


A Cage of Bones

by Sephypsycologist



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Antiharem, Other, afab nonbinary reader, apologies to any folks whose name is jennifer, bleak first chapter but things do get better, bluh bluh huge witch jennifer, red's a bully, the relationships are eventually not instantly, yeah the majority of the boys are mad at ya
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:56:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28925433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sephypsycologist/pseuds/Sephypsycologist
Summary: You really should have thought your move into a mansion full of strangers through more.But maybe there are a few upsides to it, even so.
Relationships: Papyrus (Undertale)/Reader, Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Comments: 132
Kudos: 391





	1. Bait and Switch

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [There's Still Magic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23352289) by [RosesCry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosesCry/pseuds/RosesCry). 



“Buyer beware” was a saying you probably should have listened to.

As well as “if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.”

But you were just so desperate to find a place to live. You’d just finished your master’s in library science, were working for the on campus library, and thus didn’t have a lot of funds. Rent was expensive in a college town, and with utilities on top of rent, you’d been running out of options.

Then you’d seen a flyer up on the local news board that hadn’t been there yesterday.

“Room for rent!

Local human desperate for a bestie! Luxurious home for anyone willing to put up with some rowdy monster boys!

Call Jennifer for details~ 1 XXX XXX XXXX”

Monsters? You had a lot of monster patrons since the quarantine and integration had come through five years ago, when you were just starting your sophomore year. They were lovely people, and you always looked forward to seeing them and hearing their delight at learning new things now that they had access to the surface and all its knowledge. If only you weren’t such an introvert, you might have made some friends already.

Well, this Jennifer seemed to be looking for a friend and living with monsters, so you’d get a chance!

At least that’s what was going through your mind when you called the number.

Her voice was…bubbly, but you got an impression of smugness that had disquieted your heart. But she was willing to meet up in public, show you the pictures of the house and tell you about the other residents.

The meeting place was a smoothie shop, which you’d never cared to frequent since it was always crawling with sorority girls who’d either ignored you in the past or looked down on you for not being into fashion. Not that you didn’t love the smoothies. Fruit was your preferred choice when it came to sweet treats.

So you’d gotten there five minutes early, picked up a watermelon and strawberry smoothie, and found a table outside, wanting to make sure you spotted Jennifer when she arrived. And you’d been there for a full half hour before the promised woman arrived.

Well, woman would be a stretch. She was clearly younger than you, richer than you, and much more superficial. Her step bounced, as did her overly perfect chest, and she gave you a look of pity when you stood to her call of your name.

“Oh, sweetheart, you really are desperate for a break, aren’t you?” She pouted a little before sitting down, “Well, no worries. You’ll have some cash left after rent now, so you’ll smarten up in no time, I’m sure!”

You didn’t even get a handshake, and you sat down, heart sinking as your intuition began screaming at you to run. All that jewelry, make up, perfume, and superiority complex was adding up to a bad deal.

“Uh…yeah. Hi, Jennifer. It’s nice to meet you in person,” you were going to be polite, at least.

“That’s nice of you to say, hon, but let’s get to business. I know you want to see the fabulous place you’re going to live soon!” Well, at least she was excited about it, if that big smile and sparkling eyes was genuine. “Here.”

She opened her bedazzled phone with her overly large plastic nails and showed you various pictures. “This is the entrance hall. And then the living room, the kitchen, and the backyard!” You were honestly impressed. Everything was lived in, but nice and really comfortable. The TV was big, the couches looked comfortable, and the kitchen was definitely better than any you’d ever had.

“And here’s my room as an example. Of course, the guest room isn’t decorated yet, but it does have the furniture from my old suite in it. It was kind of just storage space but I was so lonesome as the only girl among so many guys,” Jennifer giggles.

“Oh, that’s very generous of you to open your home.” You liked the look of her room, it was disgustingly frilly and covered in make up and designer things you couldn’t name, but nice sized and comfortable. “You said the guys were monsters. Is it okay if I ask a bit about them? How you ended up with them?”

She tittered and blushed, grinning eagerly, “Well, I met the head of the house, his name is Sans, when I was taking a walk my first week on campus last year. He was just so funny and cute, and we started dating. It sort of avalanched from there, with his brother and his cousins. You know monsters are mostly polyamorous? I was surprised but, I’m not complaining! I love having eight doting skeleton boyfriends!”

“Eight?” you’re very surprised, since you honestly don’t think you could handle having eight friends much less eight boyfriends. “Well, I’m happy you found such a…well, unique and happy situation. Are you sure me coming in among all that wouldn’t be awkward for your family?”

“Oh no!” She waved her hand and squinted her eyes happily like a pleased cat, “No, sweetie, it’ll be so nice to have another human around. The boys are wonderful, but they’re still men! No, I’m going to be so happy having you there, and they’ll find their own ways to handle things. They’re good at that. What about you? Is there going to be a problem from your boyfriend if you live with a lot of guys?”

“Oh.” You blush in shame and look down, “Uh, I’m not seeing anyone currently. Been too focused on my schooling till now and the house search was kind of taking all my time,” geeze this girl got eight men in less than a year and you hadn’t even been able to find a single date of any gender in your whole life.

“Well, guess that means we’ll have more girl time then!” You weren’t going to pop her bubble by telling her you were nonbinary just yet. Let her enjoy herself. “Anyway I’ll introduce you to the boys when you move in. I mean, you are going to accept, right?”

“Yes, definitely,” you assured. You’d be an idiot not to, even if you were getting skeevy vibes from her. A room, with electricity, water, internet, and furnishing, in a beautiful home, in a nice neighborhood, close to the library so you could just bike there instead of riding the bus? At the price she was offering it, this was like a dream come true.

“Great!” She stood up and giggled, “You can move in on Sunday. Everyone’ll be home so you can meet the boys, and we can get you settled.”

Nodding, you finally got your handshake and the sea of pink that was Jennifer left.

\--

You forgive yourself for being desperate. You forgive yourself for trying to hope for the best in Jennifer and not realizing just how bad it could be.

But you never should have stayed after you saw the skeletons. That was stupid.

On Sunday, with your meager possessions from your previous (very bad) flat piled in the back of a rental car, you showed up and saw Jennifer on the front steps, waving and grinning.

“Oh my gosh, Y/N! You’re finally here!” she squealed and hugged you as you held two sacks full of your clothes. Must be a very huggy person, you’d thought, never suspecting her motives. “Come in! Your room is on the third floor, so I’ll show you the way. Then you can put your things down and meet the boys before you come get the rest, okay?”

“Y-yeah. Thanks, Jennifer.” You were not exactly in your best clothes, but you were in a nice pink button up and some black yoga pants so you could move easily and not be encumbered while moving your things.

She took your arm and practically dragged you into the red brick, colonial style mansion that was her home. You really liked the white columns on the front and the small porch. The entry hall was just as she’d shown you, and you heard a TV going through the large archway that seemed to lead to the living room. The staircase was a soft curve up the right side of the entry, going to the rounded upper hall. Jennifer brought you to the very center, opposite the front door, and gestured to a wooden panel. “This is the door to your room. It’s upstairs, so you won’t have to hear anybody running around down here. Isn’t that nice?”

“Yes, that’s wonderful,” you nodded, even though you were wondering if that would make up for the fact, you’d have to watch your step so as not to disturb anybody below you.

“Great!” She opened the panel and revealed a narrow set of wooden stairs that was barely wide enough for one person to go up at a time. She shot up the stairs, and you struggled with your plastic grocery bags of clothes. Getting your two deconstructed bookshelves up here was going to suck.

At the top, you saw two things right away. One, this was an attic, and very much still a storage space. Two, the furniture had all been piled into the far-left corner of the sloped room and was just a frame and bare mattress. Well, there was a small side table and a lamp, but they looked like they belonged to a ten-year-old girl. They probably had, now that you remembered that they were once Jennifer’s.

“So here we are! I’m sure you’ve got some sheets and things, so that shouldn’t be an issue, and isn’t it so cute?” She clapped her hands and grinned. “White and pink is the BEST color combo, ever!”

“It’s very sweet, yes.” You had to take deep breaths. This could be worked with. All this storage stuff? You could probably find some kind of bits and pieces to actually live in. Or thrift something. But how would you get it upstairs?

“Okay, so put those bags down and come downstairs and meet the boys. I told them all about you already and they’re ready to meet you!” She flounced away and you did as requested. Okay, two bags of clothes on the bed, and you still had to clean out your bookshelf stacks and book boxes, plus your sheets, blankets, more clothes, and television. You only had a TV thanks to your grandma three Christmases ago.

Heading down the stairs, reaching the second-floor landing immediately gives you a chill as if Slenderman himself was looming behind you. Yes, you liked dumb internet horror stories. You had no idea you were living one until you looked up after walking down the stairs.

Eight skeletons, just like Jennifer had said, in various styles and colors of clothes. Not one of them looked happy to see you, the only smile in the bunch was Jennifer. Several of them looked downright furious, and when one of them stepped forward, he only had one eye light going, flickering yellow and blue. That had to be a bad sign if his tight, fake grin was anything to go by.

“so I’m Sans, head of the house. You’re y/n, right?” he said. Shame he was so angry, his voice probably sounded nice when he was calm.

“Yes, sir,” you go with ultra-polite just in case. You had no idea why he was angry, after all.

“As much as it wasn’t something we wanted, you’re here now because Jennifer insists you’re shaping up. So we’re laying the ground rules and if you break them, you’re out.” You could almost feel your chest growing cold with fear. What was he talking about? Shaping up? You looked to Jennifer and she just smiled and shrugged like this was just a weird conversation.

“O-okay.” The smallness of your voice made you want to kick yourself, but you were afraid. You’d never seen an angry monster before and now you were in the presence of several.

“First off, you are NEVER to enter our rooms. You are only allowed in the downstairs and your own space.” He took your nod as a response, “second, you aren’t allowed in the kitchen alone with your history. That means you can’t have any knives here. If we find one in your possession, you’re going to be reported to the police.”

Oh good grief, they thought you were a criminal or something. Again, you look at Jennifer and you see her smile getting more and more satisfied. Oh God. She planned this.

“Lastly, you can’t bring home random humans. You come home alone and do your business elsewhere. This also means no drugs in the house, no pets or animals for your pleasure, and no explosives.” Sans’ expression never wavered, remaining hard and disgusted. “And if you dare to hurt any one of us, you’re going to regret it. Big time.”

“Y-yeah…” you couldn’t say anything. You were terrified, and noticed your hands were on your shirt and shaking. “C….Can I get my things? Please?”

“Sure. Whatever.” He huffed and walked back into the living room.

One of the angrier ones, who was about as tall as Sans with a gold tooth and a black fur-lined jacket, growled at you, “an’ don’t expect any help, trash. Ya don’t deserve it.”

Everyone went back in the living room, a few of the skeletons giving you nervous glances, except Jennifer.

“What…what was that?” you can’t help asking, feeling tears building in your eyes.

“I told them about you.” She giggled, shrugging again. “Y’know, how you hate monsters and just got out of prison for hooking and drugs? And you used to make illegal fireworks in high school and kill baby animals for fun?”

“But…but that’s not true!”

“Nope,” she popped the ‘p’ and sighed, “but they believe anything I say. And if you don’t do what I tell you, I’ll make them hate you even more.”

“I don’t…why are you doing this?” it made no sense to you. You’d literally only met three days ago!

“Well, I need someone to clean the house, cook the meals, and do the laundry while I get all the credit.” Her smile was so condescending, and you realized there was no soul behind her eyes. “So that’s where you come in. They’ll hate you, you’ll do everything I need, and they’ll be all the more dedicated to my every whim. And no matter what you do, they’ll never believe you even if you told them.”

You run to the rental car and hear her lilting laughter as you do.

\--

You don’t have a choice.

As scared as you are, you have no place to go. The rental car took your scant savings, and until you can build it back up, you can’t even find a hotel for a day or two. Stupid introvert doesn’t even have any friends to call to couch surf, your coworkers aren’t close enough to be options, and of course you have no significant other.

It takes you an hour to stop crying and get back to moving your things.

At least you can lock the door to the attic, you find, so you can have some privacy. First up, you take the easy things. The boxes of your clothes, the shelf boards of your bookshelves, the little bag of your laptop and all the charger cords for it and your phone. Those last two were your lifelines, even before you entered into this hell house. A birthday gift and a graduation gift, respectively.

You family still loved you, thank God, but even they couldn’t help you, living so far away and dealing with the hardships they had to. Your grandmother had died last year of cancer, and your grandfather was losing his sight to a degenerative eye disease. Your father’s side of the family and him with it had been excised from your life, so it was just your mother dealing with all this alone. You couldn’t lean on her, monetarily or otherwise.

As you were struggling with the heavier boxes of your books, you saw the tall angry skeleton and his smaller, quieter counterpart watching you. Of course, they did nothing to help, and in fact they were smirking as you panted and strained to get them up the first set of stairs. You started crying again, adding shame to the unfairness burning in your chest.

“AH LOOK, THE WRETCH IS CRYING FROM SOME HONEST HARD WORK,” quipped the tall one, the three-pronged scar over his left socket making him even more intimidating than his height.

“Pathetic,” says the smaller one, having a mirrored scar on his skull, but with one less line. “Honestly, for someone who loves making things suffer, you’d think they’d be stronger.”

“WELL, THEY ARE HUMAN. WEAK AND UTTERLY WORTHLESS, MOST OF THEM, ESPECIALLY THIS ONE.”

You held your arms, feeling the need to protect yourself as much as you could while you went back down the main stairs, leaving your things by the door of the attic since you just couldn’t face the narrow entry right now. The judgmental eyes and snickers of the skeletons followed you out.

\--

You only left things outside the lockable door to the attic once.

When you’d come back in with another box, you’d found your first one opened and the books strewn all over the landing, covers torn and pages bent. The box itself had “SLUT” written everywhere on it and you just wanted to die.

Picking up your things, you went up with them this time. No more breaks, no more leaving things where they could be vandalized.

It hurt, and you dropped the box on your feet twice. Your elbows were raw from them scraping against the sides of the staircase, and you’d only got two boxes up. There were three more, plus the longboards of your bookcases.

It takes another half hour for you to stop sobbing and catch your breath again.

\--

“SANS, CAN YOU NOT FEEL THAT? THEY’RE GIVING A CRY FOR HELP,” Papyrus was wringing his hands in the game room. As awful as the human who Jennifer had brought apparently was, he still didn’t like feeling the tug at his soul that a Cry for Help going unanswered caused. The tall, long faced skeleton just felt awful at anyone being that upset.

“dunno what you’re talking about, bro,” Sans shrugged, though his furrowed brow and angry grimace said otherwise.

“just ignore it,” Red, the fur-jacket skeleton said, “happened all the time back home. No biggie. Not like they deserve any help.”

Everyone was in here, except Jennifer, who had left for a study group. Blue, the smallest skeleton, his round cheeks and bright smile now looking nervous and put-on, looked at Papyrus, “ARE…ARE WE REALLY NOT GOING TO AT LEAST HELP THEM WITH THE HEAVY LIFTING? IT’S DANGEROUS FOR HUMANS TO DO THAT ALONE. THEY CAN HURT THEIR SPINES…”

“CAN IT,” The tall scarred skeleton hissed. “IF THEY HURT THEMSELVES, ALL THE BETTER. THEY CAN’T CAUSE TROUBLE IF THEY’RE INCAPACITATED.”

“edge, don’t order my brother around,” one of the lanky skeletons warned. “but he’s right, bro. just…try to think of something else. it’ll go away eventually.”

Blue and Papyrus looked at each other again, as if asking if this was really happening. But none of the other skeletons in the room moved, and being so outnumbered, and their brothers both very against them doing anything, both of them just slumped into a corner, passing a color puzzle cube back and forth as the guilt weighed heavy in their chests.

Of course, being in the game room, thus in the hallway right of the stairs on the first floor, none of them saw the very tall figure make its way up the stairs and into the attic stairway.

\--

You heard a voice call very softly, “Hello, human? You seem very distressed.”

Jumping from the surprise, you turn your tearstained face to the stairs and see the top of a skull, with very small sockets that are clearly squinting to try and see you. None of the skeletons you’d seen had done this. There must be more than just the eight.

“I….why would you care?” you ask, the bitterness making you cringe internally. But you didn’t want to get your hopes up after all you’d been through.

“Because you’re clearly new here, and if you’re upset, that means you probably are in the same boat as me.” There were now little crinkles at the edges of his sockets, and you realized he was probably smiling. “The others call me….well, uh…Crooks.” He clearly hated the name, from the visible wince, “but I heard your soul Call for Help. Have they already been so rude to you as to make you despair?”

You liked his voice. It was a little strained, as if he was purposefully being quiet, but there was concern in it and you desperately needed it. “Um…something like that.”

“Well,” Crooks looked around, “It seems you’re moving in. I can help you. I’m quite strong, even though you probably would rather not look at me for long. I’m quite scary, apparently.”

“Well…you’re treating me a lot better than anybody else here,” you sit up from crying on the old mattress. “So why don’t you come up and let me get used to you before we go get the rest of my things?”

Slowly, very reluctantly, he came further up the stairs, and your heart hurt seeing what he meant. His mouth was utterly messed up, teeth leaning, broken off, and stained red, and his full height being around eight feet, having to lean over to fit in the space. “Well, this is me. Hello, human.”

“Y/N” you say softly.

“Human Y/N” he smiles a little, and you feel your trepidation about him ease. “You definitely reacted better than my cousins’ human to me. I didn’t even get a chance to say hello before she was screaming and throwing things.”

“I’m not surprised; she’s evil,” you state, the despair in your lungs making your voice heavy.

“Yes, I think so,” Crooks takes a step toward the bed, then stops, seeming nervous, “Would…would a hug be out of place? You seem like you could use one.”

“I don’t know how skeleton hugs feel, but…I really, really do,” you’d take anything good right now. Anything kind.

Gentle as if he was picking up a glass sculpture, Crooks kneels next to your bed and wraps his arms around your body. The grey sweater he wore was soft, and the bones beneath were warm. You clung to him shamelessly, shaking as you tried not to cry again.

“It will be okay. I’ll help you get your things up here, and then when it’s time for dinner, you can eat with my brother and I in the basement,” he said soothingly, his long, spindly fingers delicately stroking your head. “It’s just through the living room and kitchen, down the stairs by the china cabinet. We’ll come and fetch you if you like.”

“Please?” you felt like a child, like when you’d wake up from a night terror and your mother would hold you. You’d called for help, and someone came.

\--

This poor human.

Crooks was more than happy to help them move their heavy things, especially when they’d used so much energy on panic and fear. They’d explained to him how they’d come to be there, and he just wanted to tear into that witch Jennifer but….no. Violence wasn’t something he was going to do now that he had a choice.

No, and it would be bad for Y/N if he did so. The others would probably gang up on them, and he and his brother couldn’t exactly fight all of them at once.

So instead he’d do what he could for this very polite, quiet little human who hadn’t reacted badly to him at all. Yes, they’d been unnerved by his looks, but they’d quickly shaken that off in favor of gratitude and genuine happiness at his company and help. The sweet dear had actually hurt themself carrying things before he got there. No matter, he had plenty of magic to spare now, so he could heal their little scrapes easily, especially with how very much he liked them.

They had so many books! Boxes and boxes of them, and shelves to store them (he’d help them put those together tomorrow, maybe while the others were all busy at work.) And they worked at a library, how wonderful! Crooks loved books, since they could take his mind away from his problems so easily and let him experience a whole different life.

The human’s soul had stopped crying out for help once they calmed down, which Crooks was sure took some pressure off the friendlier of his cousins. He can imagine Papyrus especially feeling terrible about someone feeling so lost and not helping them. But then again, now that Jennifer was in the house, no one was acting as they had before.

Thankfully, Y/N seemed to be a very welcome breath of fresh air. They smiled, spoke kindly to him, and the little pulses of relief and safety he felt come from them as he aided them in constructing their space in the attic made his sickly orange magic tinge his cheekbones. They felt like he had saved them. It was so nice to know he’d managed that, for real this time.

“Um?” Y/N didn’t want to say his ‘name’ so they had started making that noise to get his attention. “Why did you say that we’re in the same boat earlier? I’d have thought you would be more acceptable since you’re family, right?”

With a weary sigh, Crooks explains, “Jennifer hates my brother and I for our appearances, and we were already…somewhat estranged from the others before that. We’ve been through some trauma and had to resort to desperate measures that the others didn’t agree with, and thus they caved to Jennifer’s whims. My brother and I aren’t allowed to leave the house, and we aren’t technically supposed to be upstairs either but,” he smiled sneakily, “I come up here to get some sunshine anyway. I learned how to make my movements almost silent so no one even knows I’m here now.”

Your look of concern and surprise makes him giggle, “Don’t worry, they can only yell at me. They know better than to try anything else. And I don’t mind you being up here. It will make visits even better.”

“They do that to their own cousins?” your soul is becoming distressed again, making soft hums of horror. Ah, he knows those sounds so well. “What kind of beasts are they? They’ve always been this horrid?”

“No,” he gently stroked your hair, and you lean into the gesture, still desperate for comfort and compassion. “No, we could at least wander about the house before Jennifer. Though, we never have been allowed in the kitchen without supervision. Understandable at first, since we were both literally starving.”

“What?!”

“Shhhh,” he has to keep you quiet or the others might investigate. “That’s just part of the trauma from before, it was good they kept us from hurting ourselves by eating too much at once. We’re both healthy now, no need to fret.”

Your eyes shudder as they take in his expression, looking for signs it’s not entirely true. The fact you look him in the face at all makes his soul warm and a smile spread. So very kind, for someone who just screams Justice. He’d gotten very good at guessing what trait human souls had before he saw them. You, very clearly, were Justice, but you had already shown you appreciated and wanted to return kindness. Perhaps a mix? You were an adult after all, your being had time to become more complex than a child…

“And you’re sure your brother will be okay with me eating with you guys? I don’t want to upset him by taking food meant for you or anything.”

He shook his head, “No worries, human Y/N. I’ll just ask Papyrus to set out three plates for us to take instead of the usual two.”

“Which one is Papyrus?” you ask, and he’s tempted. Very tempted, to just tell you all of them are. But he resists.

“He is the one who looks like me, but with a photogenic smile and better sight. Also slightly smaller. Usually he is wearing a red scarf.”

Recognition sparks in your eyes, and you nod, “The tall nervous one then. Alright.”

“Did none of them even tell you their names?” He’s getting more frustrated with the others by the minute. Good grief, none of them have any manners now it seems!

“No. I mean…Sans did before he laid down the law but other than that, no.”

“Here then,” you seem surprised as he pulls out his phone and his touch gloves from his pocket. Bone didn’t generate the right signal for these touch-screen phones, so they all had to use these. “I’ll do it for them.”

He pulled up his photos and showed the first one. It was his brother, snuggling with a large plush narwhal that Crooks had ordered online. “This is my brother. The others call him Axe, but he hates his nickname as much as I hate mine.”

You nod, and he flips to the next one. Papyrus and Blue are in the kitchen, covered in glitter and looking guilty that he’d caught them. “Here’s Papyrus, and the little one is Blueberry, or Blue for short. He’s usually rather nice and energetic, when Jennifer isn’t around.”

“Oh yeah. He looked like it was killing him to just stand there while Sans yelled at me.” Crooks agreed silently. It probably had been.

The next photo made you flinch, and he didn’t blame you, “Yes, I’m guessing you’ve met Edge then.” The photo was Edge with a bandanna on his skull cleaning the crown molding. He was still glaring because he hadn’t wanted to be photographed. “I’m sorry he was cruel to you. He can be calm, but he’s very harsh on people he considers rulebreakers.”

The next photo was very secret and Crooks was proud of himself. “This is Razzberry and his brother, Syrup. Syrup’s the tall one. They act a lot like a master and pet, but I caught them relaxing one night and I’m so proud. Razzy’s usually very harsh, too.”

Looking at you, you seem confused. “Razzy’s the small one, then? He…he and Edge both called me worthless when I was struggling with my boxes.”

If only he could explain the timelines, but Crooks just nodded, “He and Edge are usually on that wavelength, yes. Again, I am so sorry you went through that.” He glances at the box with the insult scribbled all over it, “And you obviously ran afoul of Red, since that’s his handwriting.”

He flips a few pictures and shows you Red and Sans stacking markers on Syrup’s head, “This one is Red.”

“He’s the one who…?” You look at the box, then at the skeleton. “Okay….at least I don’t have to wonder who it was.”

“Yes, it’s too juvenile for Edge or Razzy to do, and Syrup hates confrontation of any sort,” he then flips to an different picture, last Gyftmas. Blue was hugging his brother in thanks for a new set of decals for his motorcycle. “This is the last of us, Blue’s older brother, Honey.”

“Oh…they look so happy.” You frown, and Crooks nods.

“We were. Much much happier before the witch came.”

“You call Jennifer a witch?” you almost smile, and he feels encouraged.

“Yes. Does she not fit the role of an evil, conniving woman who hates and destroys the happiness of others?” an emphatic nod from you makes him grin. “I certainly think so, and my brother agrees.”

You sigh and look at your finished bookshelf. “Thank you, for everything. I think being stuck here won’t be a death sentence now that I know you’re here.”

“Of course it won’t,” he stood up and smoothed his sweater down, “now, anytime you get hungry, you text me.” Handing his phone to you, you quickly grab your own. Something flutters inside his ribcage in pure joy. He’s exchanging phone numbers with a new friend. He has made a friend, after all this time. “Maybe together we can figure out how to make food around the rules.”

“Did…Did they just say you can’t be in the kitchen unsupervised?” you ask, and he nods. “They told me that, too. Do you think maybe…we could supervise each other?”

He blinks a few times, the blurry outline of your body swimming before he squints it back into focus, but he feels a welling of excitement, “I think that’s a lovely idea. We’ll try it tomorrow, if you’ll be here for meals?”

“I have work from six till two on Monday, Wednesday, Friday but I will always be here for dinner. I don’t take the late shifts if I can help it.”

“Hm, what about Tuesday then?” and you nod.

“I don’t work till eight then. I’ll be up and we can try breakfast.” The growing happiness in your face makes him want to sing (even if it would be badly) and Crooks gets up. “Oh, and…uh.”

He stops, tilting his skull a bit.

“I thought…of maybe a new nickname for you? Since you don’t like Crooks.” You seem awkward, blushing a little, and he finds it adorable. Like a tiny baby animal meeting a new creature for the first time.

“I’d be glad to hear it,” is his reply.

Your smile is apologetic, as if you expect him to hate it, “Well, with how sweet you’ve been to me today, after everything I’ve been through, I ah….well, all I could think was that you’re the epitome of a cinnamon roll. So how about Cinnamon?”

His soul fizzled in reaction to the hope and affection when you suggested the name. He loved it. “That’s absolutely perfect, Y/n.” He almost couldn’t keep his volume down, but he’s sure the painfully big smile that accompanied his words said everything he’d wanted to shout. “Now, I must prepare my brother for company, and I will be so very happy to tell him of my delightful new name! Maybe together we’ll think of something better for him, too.”

“I look forward to it,” You beamed at him, and with a much brighter outlook on the foreseeable future, the newly dubbed Cinnamon hurried to get his basement home ready for company.


	2. Sugar skulls and Spice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stars bless Cinnamon and his brother <3

Papyrus, Edge, and Blue were in the kitchen when there was a knock on the basement door.

“AH, CROOKS, WE AREN’T QUITE READY YET,” Blue came to the door and opened it, smiling awkwardly up at his cousin. “IS THERE SOMETHING YOU TWO NEED?”

“Um, yes,” Crooks fiddled with his fingers, looking nervously at Edge who was glaring at him, “You see, I, ah, I ran into the new lodger earlier today. I heard something going on and peeked out to see and…well…”

“OH NO! DID THEY HURT YOU?!” Papyrus was distressed, thinking this scary new human might have been cruel to his shy cousin.

“No!” Waving his hands, Crooks shook his head. “Quite the opposite really. They were very upset and I got to talking with them and…well, I invited them to eat with my brother and I tonight at dinner. I got the impression the rest of you would rather they not be in the dining room with you.”

“I DON’T CARE,” Edge huffed and kept working, being the main cook other than Razzy. “GO AHEAD AND EAT THEM. WE CAN AUCTION THEIR GOODS OFF TO PAY FOR THE CLEAN UP.”

Crooks winced and curled his arms in on himself, “I…I was just going to ask you, Papyrus, to maybe keep their plate here so we can pick it up when they join us. We just want to talk with them. I found them quite charming and thought maybe my brother would enjoy their company, too.”

Glaring at Edge, Blue offered, “I’LL MAKE SURE IT GETS DONE! EVEN THOUGH WE’RE A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR PAST, WE’RE HOPING THEY GET BETTER, SO MAYBE MAKING FRIENDS WILL HELP THEM. GO FOR IT!”

Papyrus nodded, “I’M VERY HAPPY YOU’RE WILLING TO HELP THEM, COUSIN. I GET WORRIED ABOUT YOU TWO BEING LONESOME DOWN THERE.”

“I know you do,” Crooks smiled a little, though Edge’s growl of irritation made it disappear. “I’ll go back down now. Thank you for listening.”

He didn’t close the door back in time to block Edge saying “GOOD RIDDENCE.”

\--

You hear a loud voice call, “TIME FOR DINNER!” and steel yourself.

Firstly, you need to ask someone where the bathroom is. Secondly, you’re not looking forward to facing everyone else as you make your way to where Cinnamon is waiting for you.

Going downstairs, you feel a hand against your back for a second before you’re sent sprawling down the last three stairs with a yell.

Laughter meets you as your mind catches up with the fact you’re on the floor and your knees and elbows hurt.

“wow, human, watch your step there,” comes a growling, amused voice, and you look up to see Red. He’s happy as he sees you stagger to your feet and the blood leaking from your left elbow.

You don’t answer him, just try to take deep breaths and hobble toward the living room.

“Where are you going, wretch?” you recognized Razzy’s voice and turned.

“I’m sorry, um, I was invited to the basement for dinner.” Please, just let him leave you alone.

“Hah! Likely story. You just want to go to the kitchen and grab a weapon!” He had stalked over and grabbed your arm, hard, “We aren’t as stupid as you humans are. You’re coming with me.”

“P-please let go!” You pull, trying to get away as his clawed hands dig into your skin.

“Cousin!”

Razzy turns when he hears Cinnamon call, and you’re quickly whisked into the arms of the larger skeleton, “Thank you, cousin Razzy, for finding my guest for me. Y/N, I came to get you for our welcome home dinner like we discussed.”

Cinnamon’s smile was very forced, his squinting sockets darting worriedly to your bleeding elbow and the new cuts from Razzy’s claws.

“Are you joking?” Razzy growled and stomped his foot, “You seriously think we’re just going to let you devour a human under out noses? Even one so foul as this one?”

Papyrus, hearing the commotion, comes out, “OH, RAZZY, I FORGOT TO TELL YOU. CROOKS ALREADY CLEARED THIS WITH BLUE AND EDGE AND I EARLIER. I THINK IT’S A GOOD CHANCE FOR ALL THREE OF THEM TO MAYBE MAKE FRIENDS AND DO BETTER!”

“You naïve fool!” Razzy’s voice began to screech, but when an angry Sans appeared at the doorway, he backed down. “Fine. See if I care. One less problem to deal with and we can finally have cause to keep the cannibals locked away forever.”

You cling to Cinnamon and curl in.

“Thank you, Papyrus. Sans.” He nods to them, then carefully carries you through the living room and kitchen, setting you on the top of the stairs. “You’re bleeding, Y/N. What happened?”

“Red pushed me down the last few stairs and Razzy thought I was lying to try and steal a weapon from the kitchen,” you can barely say it, feeling angry tears burning your throat.

“I’m not surprised, but I am disappointed in them,” Cinnamon went down in front of you and led you to the basement, “Don’t worry. The monster food part of the meal will heal your cuts perfectly, and probably help you deal with some of the shock of what you’ve been through today. And you’re free to stay with us as long as you like after the food is gone, as well!”

You feel better. Still shaken by getting grabbed, still discouraged from being pushed down the stairs, but better knowing Cinnamon was there.

You’d also forgotten all about needing the bathroom, but you’d probably ask Cinny later.

\--

There was an obvious connection already. Axe looked at the stairwell as his brother descended it with an honestly weak looking little human behind him. Yeah, they’d have been killed in a second back home, but that was thankfully not the case here.

No, here, their soul glowed a soft color similar to that Mountain Spring drink Syrup was always drinking. Yellow-green, Justice and Kindness. He could just barely see it, a lot of his Sight having gone with his other eye, but Axe liked the little waves of trust and happiness he could feel coming off them as they held out their hand and introduced themself.

They had called his brother Cinnamon. Something sweet and well loved, something good, instead of just taking the hurtful jab at his broken smile. Yeah, he liked this human. Especially after hearing his brother gush all day about how much fun he’d had helping them move into the attic and put their furniture together.

“y/n, huh? nice name.” It was. He was glad it was one he’d never heard. He’d hate to think he might have killed them already back home. But no, he’d never seen a human like this one. Not this combination of features, height, hair and eye color. Nope, brand new.

“My mom would thank you for the compliment,” they smiled, taking a seat on the floor with him and his brother to eat around their little coffee table. Paps had set it up like a picture he’d seen in a magazine about travel. Apparently cushions on the floor was common seating in Japan, wherever that was. He really liked that they were trying not to stare at his skull, and that they were talking so animatedly with Paps about books. His brother was a bookworm and he was proud of it. Taught him how, after all.

“Sans!”

Axe jolted and looked up, “huh?”

“You got lost in thought, again, brother,” Papyrus’ face was worried. “Where did you go this time?”

“thinkin’ about how I taught you to read, and now you won’t stop,” he grinned, and liked the relaxing shoulders it caused.

The human smiled warmly, “That’s quite a feat. You must be a really dedicated big brother.”

“try to be,” he answered, and asked, “you have any siblings, y/n?”

“No. I’m grateful though. My childhood was rough and I wouldn’t want anybody else having to go through it.” They sighed, then shook their head and gestured at the plate, “This is really good. Which of your cousins cooks?”

“joint effort,” Axe answered as his brother nodded. “Edge and Razzy were forced to get cooking lessons to impress Jennifer, so they’re in charge, but little Paps and Blue like to cook too, even if they aren’t allowed, per say.”

“I…I also would like to cook again, but there’s obvious obstacles to that,” Cinnamon sighs, and Axe grins as he thinks of the nickname. It fits. His brother is a good soul who deserved none of what happened to them, and he’s also very spicy if his confidence is in a good place. Sass has no better master than his brother on a good day.

“heh, bro, you should give y/n a taste of your sassy skills.”

“What? No!” there was a blush and Axe was loving it. His brother flustered so easy to the right stimulus.

“do iiiiit, paps, they’ll love your spicy side.”

They watched in interest, and finally, his brother relented, “Fine. But only if you give me a topic.”

“the new mettaton gyftmas special from last year.”

“OH MY GOD.” Ah, there was the good volume. No more pussyfooting around how he wanted to talk. “NO. THAT ABOMINATION OF CINEMA HAS NO PLACE IN HISTORY! I REMEMBER THE GOOD DAYS OF METTATON AND THAT WAS FAR AFTER THE FALL. IT’S LIKE BEING ON THE SURFACE SAPPED ALL CREATIVITY OUT OF HIM, GOOD GRIEF, IT’S AWFUL!”

Axe watched the human as his brother ranted, and he liked what he saw. They were surprised at the volume, but were quickly interjecting with agreements about not liking when performers did x or hating when singers did y, and the two of them were caught up in a flow of understanding. Good stars above, he’d wanted this for so long. Someone understood his brother. Someone was willing to TRY and understand him, regardless of his messed up mouth and bad eyes, regardless of them being monsters. Just two souls that were sending out signals that harmonized.

Cinnamon got so excited he scooped the human up and spun them around in a hug, and they just laughed and held on, squealing a little at the speed.

“Brother?” the quiet voice was back and the human was set down as Paps kneeled next to him. “You’re crying…”

Huh? Hand to his cheekbone, he pulled it back to find plum colored tears. His magic had been shifting back toward blue since they’d been in this timeline, with food. “oh…I guess I got too happy, bro.”

“You’re crying because you’re happy?” he asked, and Axe nodded.

“yeah. you found a buddy who likes ya, and they don’t mind me being around. been a long time wishing for that.”

“Should I go?” asks the human, not wanting to be intrusive, clearly. How cute.

“nah,” he uses a little magic and tugs them close, wrapping them up in his arms to nuzzle their head a bit. “you made my wish for him come true. You’re stayin’ sunshine.”

Their face got warm against his arm, and he heard Paps giggle. Yeah. this was good. He’d work on keeping this.

\--

You stayed in the basement much later than you should have, but you didn’t want to go upstairs.

“Didn’t you say you had work early?” Cinny had said, and you’d realized it was midnight already.

“Yeah but I’m…kind of scared to go upstairs. What if they’re out there again?” It felt easy, talking to Cinny and his brother. You still hadn’t found a good name for him, so you’d just been saying “bro” and “dude” and other general statements of “hey you” for now.

“I’ll walk you up. they won’t mess with me and that’ll let me know you got to your room safe so I can tell cinny here,” he stood up and you felt relief wash over you. They made you feel safe. They were strong, they were willing to listen to you, and they had shown already that you were worth something in their eyes. You were no longer alone in this house against so many others.

“Thank you, dude, seriously.” He waved you to the stairs with a grin, his one red eye light big and fuzzy at the edges like it’d been all night. Cinny said that meant he was happy, and you liked it.

“plus, after you get home from work, maybe you’ll have thought of a cool nickname for me, eh?” he was teasing, and you grinned and lightly brush off his arm with your hand, not quite a push.

Behind you, Cinnamon sighed, “Get her to bed, Sans.” Then he stopped. “Wait, I have completely forgotten, friend, what pronouns do you want used?”

“oh shoot, yeah,” his brother nodded.

Someone was asking? You felt almost giddy. Everyone else always just assumed when they saw you. “I….I use they or she, but Jennifer’s been calling me a girl since we met three days ago and I’m kind of sick of it. I’m nonbinary.”

Both of the skeletons noddy, and Axe bowed a little at the door to the stairs, “Shall we then, gentlethem?”

You couldn’t help laughing, and now you were happy crying like he had earlier. You couldn’t see it, but they were both so glad to hear you laughing. Safe with Axe by your side, you were walked through the darkened, empty house till you reached your stairs, and he gave you a small salute and a whispered thank you before vanishing before your eyes. Wowie. Your first big show of magic.

\--

The house was quiet when you got up, but you were surprised to find Cinny when you snuck into the kitchen. He was sitting inside the open door to the basement.

“Friend!” He whispered, grinning, “I wanted to make sure you had someone to wish you a good day at work.”

You grinned, already dressed and ready, “I came to see if I could find some granola bars or something before I went.”

“Oh, phooey, no!” He stood up and pulled a bowl of Raisin Flakes and a cup of yogurt out of ….nowhere? “I broke the rules a little, but you deserve a nutritious breakfast before you spend all day at work.”

He sets it on the counter and you beam. Much better than the little bar that you’d have yoinked otherwise. Thank stars, because you ended up really needing the fuel at work. The dorms were out of power because of a tree branch falling on the lines, so you were swamped with students desperate for a place to charge their electronics and computers to do research on.

At lunch, you look at your phone as you eat an order of chicken nuggets at the food court in the student union next door (what? they’re good!) On the screen you have several texts marked “Sugarskull” with some stars, which you’d put as Cinny’s contact name, and one from an unknown number.

The unknown says “this is cinny’s bro. he gave me your number. Be safe.”

You enter the number into contacts as “sugar bro” and giggle before reading Cinny’s.

“It’s been two hours! The others are all at work so I cleaned the house! At least the living room anyway!”

“Cleaning update: I finished the game room and the dining room!”

“lunch time! I hope you eat well and remember to hydrate. That’s very important for humans! I read that once!”

You send back “Great job on the cleaning! I’m finishing my food and drink now and I look forward to another fun dinner with you and your brother!”

He sent back a starry-eyed emoji and you feel good. Apparently good enough one of your coworkers asks if you have a crush. Ah well, guess you have to reign in your excitement over having found actual friends for the first time in years.

\--

When you enter the house after carefully locking your bike to the radiator in the garage (Cinny had shown you yesterday), you see Jennifer tapping her foot.

“Where have you been?” she demands, and you have to think a moment from how startled you are.

“At work?”

“Well I need you! You have to go make a chicken teriyaki dinner for the guys right now. If you don’t, I’ll make you regret it. I have a lot of ways to have them kick you out.” She seemed furious.

“I…I’m not supposed to be in the kitchen, though?” you try to beg off, not even knowing a recipe for the requested meal.

“Ugh, like I care! I heard you were with the freaks last night, so you can’t be too worried about rules. Go cook or else!” She screamed at you and you ran to the kitchen just to get away from her.

\--

Cinny heard footsteps and rushed to the stairs, gasping in delight when he saw you coming down.

“Y/N! Welcome home! How was work?” He hugged you tight and you practically melted onto him.

“Cinny, I can’t stay and talk. I have to figure out how to cook chicken teriyaki before the others get home.”

“eh?” Axe looked up from the couch, “why?”

“If I don’t cook dinner for everyone, Jennifer’s going to try and get me in trouble,” you are almost disappointed when Cinny puts you down.

“NEVER FEAR!” your tall friend strikes a hero’s pose. “I HAVE GATHERED MANY RECIPES SINCE WE CAME TO THE SURFACE, AND I WILL HELP YOU!”

“You don’t have to, Cinny, really, she’s only threatening me,” but he waved you off and rushed upstairs.

“I have to see him cooking again. this’ll be a treat,” Axe shunted you back up the basement stairs and you saw Cinny scrolling on his phone while getting out pans and ingredients.

“YES! ALRIGHT, WE HAVE EVERYTHING THE RECIPE CALLS FOR. NOW, DID SHE SPECIFY ANY SIDES SHE PROMISED OR CAN WE BE CREATIVE WITH THOSE?” Cinny looked like a master, and you just shake your head. “GOOD! I LOVE BEING ABLE TO MAKE PAIRINGS MYSELF. BROTHER, YOU CUT THE GREENS, Y/N, IF YOU WOULD DEAL WITH THE MEATS? I AH…I can’t…can’t really handle touching that.”

His voice dwindling and the beads of orange magic on his skull made you worry, instantly coming to his side, “Of course. You tell me what to do with it and I’ll follow every word.”

The three of you worked well together, you and Axe under Cinny’s guidance.

“NOW,” having regained his confidence, Cinny was at full volume, “THE GUIDE SAID TO USE SOME SPICES, BUT NOT WHICH ONES. I SAY WE USE THESE.” He handed you various things, and you only got a glimpse of one of the grinder labels.

“Clove?” you ask.

“what’s that?” Axe looks over your shoulder.

“IT’S A WARM SPICE, USUALLY USED IN PUMPKIN PIE WITH CINNAMON AND NUTMEG, BUT A LOT STRONGER THAN THOSE. IT’S ALSO VERY GOOD IN SAVORY DISHES AND USED IN INDIA QUITE OFTEN!”

“A more intense kind of cinnamon…” you smile, looking at his brother, “hey, you want to be called clove from now on?”

He blinks that big red eye, then grins, “great. I like it.”

“CINNAMON AND CLOVE, A PERFECT COMBINATION! Y/N SHOULD NAME EVERYONE FROM NOW ON!” Cinny giggled and the three of you joyously made the meal.

\--

Papyrus is delighted by the meal, as is everyone else.

The spices are exquisite, the sides are well thought out, and it’s an inspiration that makes him ache to try cooking again.

“YOU’RE A MIRACLE WORKER, MY LOVE,” Edge purred, gently pressing his teeth to Jennifer’s hand.

“Awww, aren’t you a gentleman? I worked very hard on this, so I was hoping you’d all like it.” She preened as the skeletons all agreed. Well, they made appreciative noises.

Syrup looked at the meal, then at Jennifer, “what spices did you use? Kinda like it better than the stuff from the takeout place.”

“Oh, um, family secret!” Jennifer’s composure slipped for half a second but she recovered quick and giggled. “A woman needs to keep her mysteries to herself, naughty boy.”

He nodded, continuing to eat. Red had practically inhaled his portion, and Honey sighed happily, “you used honey in this, I know, and it’s lovely.”

Blue jolted a bit, looking the plate over, “REALLY? I DIDN’T-“

“Blue, you’re being loud again” Jennifer pouted. “you know it hurts my ears. And after I made this delicious meal for you!”

“S-sorry, love,” he apologized quietly. He kept forgetting. He really didn’t mean to be rude to his lovely datemate.

“It’s alright. I know you’ll make it up to me,” queen of the castle, Jennifer giggled, especially knowing that it was Y/N who had done all the work.

\--

It was…not as bad as it could have been.

You could still see at least one of your friends, since Clove could telelport, even if you were forced to hide in your room. If the “family” was in the living room, you couldn’t make your way to the basement without facing them, which you’d much rather avoid. So on those days, you could at least see Clove, and maybe get to the basement if it was a good day for him.

That was another thing you learned. Cinny and Clove had good days and bad days. Cinny seemed to have more good days, but sometimes when you’d get to the basement, Clove would be curled up on the sofa with his back to the room, and Cinny would just take you to his bedroom for the afternoon.

On Cinny’s bad days, he would be snappish, short tempered, and frustrated. Clove would hold your hand and remind him that you were there, and not judging what he was doing. Then he’d cry, and hug you in apology. Clove and Cinny both told you that having you there helped, that they were having a lot fewer of these bad days now that you were visiting every day. It still hurt your heart when your boys were upset.

They were yours, in at least that the three of you were united for each other against the rest of the house.

But there was one thing that was bothering you, and one Saturday while you and Cinny were in your room, working on patching up an old dresser for you to use for holding your clothes, you asked, “Cinny?”

“Yes, dear friend?” he chirped, very gingerly applying the glue to hold the patch onto the wood.

“That first night we had dinner together…why did Razzy call you a cannibal?”

You heard the brush handle crack in his hand, and you looked up. It was like all the life had drained from his face, sockets even slack and staring blankly ahead. “Is it something private? I’m sorry.”

“No…” he blinked a few times and little drops of dull orange gathered at the edges of his sockets, “No, y/n, you’re alright. I was just…I was really hoping you forgot he said that.”

“Cinny, are you okay? You don’t have to tell me if it upsets you that much,” you crawled over and took his hand, nuzzling your cheek against his phalanges softly.

“You deserve to know, though.” He was clearly very distressed, and it stung to feel him start to shake. “I…I have told you my brother and I went through a lot of trauma, yes?”

“Yes.”

“And that we starved at one point?”

“Cinny…” a horrifying thought was dawning on you.

He must have seen it, because he took a deep breath, “Clove and I were stuck underground in a famine for seven years. It got…got bad enough we….when humans fell down we…” He choked. “There wasn’t a choice. Monsters just dust, we don’t leave bodies and that meant without food….I’m so sorry.”

You launched into his chest and were held fast as he sobbed. “I didn’t want to. Stars I didn’t want to but everyone in Snowdin was counting on us.”

“Cinny, don’t cry,” you hypocritically soothed as your own tears dripped off your chin. “Don’t cry, sweetheart, it’s okay. You had no choice, it’s alright.”

“But it’s not alright!” he almost wailed, and you squeezed tighter in your hold, “What made our lives worth more? What right did we have? If it had been you, we’d never have known!”

There was creaking behind you and you heard the familiar shuffle of Clove’s slippers. He must have sensed something was wrong; you can’t explain it, but the brothers were almost supernaturally aware of the state of the other.

“Brother…they know,” Cinny stated wetly, still holding onto you almost painfully tight.

“you still okay, sunshine?” was Clove’s noticeably quiet, hesitant response.

“Clove, come here,” you motioned for him to walk over behind Cinny so you could see his face.

His eyelight was tiny, shaking deep in the blackness behind it, and he looked almost afraid. You just tried to smile despite your own tears. “I don’t…” you had to swallow to clear your throat, “I don’t blame either of you for surviving. Humans do that, too, when things get bleak.” That seemed to surprise them both, as Cinny flinched and Clove’s eye light widened a bit. “You did what had to be done, when there was no choice, and you lived. You both made it here and I am so glad. I’d have been so alone without you both, and you both deserved better than what was forced on you. I’m horrified that you had to live through hell, but you made it and I’m so proud that you’re here.”

Cinny whimpered softly, and Clove scooted up behind him to hug from that side, his nasal cavity right in front of your nose over his brother’s shoulder.

“i didn’t want to tell you in case you hated us,” Clove admitted softly, half muffled by Cinny’s bright green painting shirt. “i was sure you’d hate us like the others did when they found out.”

“I could never hate either of you. You saved me,” you feel your chest squeeze tight. What you really meant was “I love you” but that sounded so strange to say. You weren’t used to friends being able to say that. But you did mean it, and you hope they understand.

Cinny’s chest vibrates, very slightly, and you begin to hear a sound. Almost like a cat purring as his long jawbone gently rubs the side of your head. “We love you, too. You made living here actually fun.”

“we’re kinda lost without you at this point, kiddo,” Clove adds, a ghost of his smile appearing as he gently boops the little ridge over his ‘nose’ into the tip of yours. “please don’t leave. Haven’t heard cinny purr for years and I don’t wanna lose that again.”

“I won’t,” you’re still crying, but you smile. “I couldn’t miss this for the world.”

You learned two things that day. One, skeletons purr when they feel extreme positive emotions. And two, that you are capable of feeling hatred. Because learning what Cinnamon and Clove had overcome only to be locked in their tiny basement made you vehemently hate Jennifer with all your being. And you’re going to do everything you can to make sure she gets what she deserves…and that Cinny and Clove get everything they could ever ask for.


	3. A Day Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You're thinking about how to help your boys.

After their confession, you were on a mission to improve Cinny and Clove’s lives as much as you could.

For one, you started sitting on your stairs when you were home, listening to the household and taking notes on routines. That let you hear a lot of information about the other skeletons and Jennifer as well.

Papyrus, Edge, Razzy, and Blue were all very active, energetic sorts of people, and usually spoke loudly if not snapped into quiet by Jennifer. But she never snapped at Edge or Razzy, you note. Saturdays, weekday mornings, and Friday evenings tended to be quiet, because everyone was busy doing various things.

The skeletons never spoke about friends that you could hear, except to say they missed them. And that was only Papyrus, and when Jennifer was not around. Your door was next to the second floor bathroom on the left and Syrup’s room on the right. His brother’s room was past that, and the space above the living room was unused as far as you knew. You hadn’t actually explored that hallway, so you didn’t know what was there.

The rest of the skeletons were as follows:

Blue’s room was next to the bathroom, then Honey’s, then Red’s as the last before the hall. Edge and Jennifer both went down that hall, so they must have their bedrooms there. Sans and Papyrus never came upstairs, so their rooms must be somewhere on the first floor.

Cinny and Clove helped you when you showed them your notes. “If we can find out when they’re all out of the house, we might be able to enjoy ourselves a little while they’re out,” You explain, and they seem eager to help. Eventually you end up with a full floorplan of the house and what rooms are used for.

You also are documenting every task Jennifer forces on you.

Every dinner she orders, every house cleaning, and definitely all the homework assignments from her college classes, it was all kept in a notebook hidden behind your books in your bookshelf.

You tried to explain that you couldn’t really make much sense of the work since you hadn’t been in the classroom, but Jennifer shrugged, “Like I care! Just do the work, and as long as I pass, you don’t get shoved out on the street.”

Okay, if she wanted it that way. You did the assignments as best you could, and the B’s and C’s seemed good enough for her. But it just made you resent her more, knowing she was willing to coast on work that wasn’t even her own.

But some things were good. You and Cinny had started prepping food for yourselves with groceries you’d buy and put in a previously empty cabinet in his and Clove’s sitting room. If you needed fresh produce or meats, you’d only buy what was necessary the day of after having a gallon of milk you’d labeled for yourself tainted with some red substance that neither Cinny or Clove would explain to you. Both of you had to stop Clove from going to attack Red that day, though, for wasting the milk. He finally quieted when you said you’d pour it out on the garden in the backyard as fertilizer and thus it served a purpose.

Whatever the reason, Red really had it out for you. He had the same teleporting ability Clove did, and he’d used it to push you down the stairs repeatedly after all the months you’ve lived with the skeletons. He vandalizes anything of yours you leave outside your room, including scratching further insults into your bike paint and popping the tires more than once. He’d ridicule you across the room if he catches you heading upstairs (“how many stds you catch t’day, slut?”), and teamed up with his brother and Razzberry to talk down to you on the occasions Jennifer decided you needed to be ‘put in your place’.

Apparently, if she thought you were too happy, Jennifer would decide to make a problem for you. The first time, she poured bleach on one of her sweaters and said you’d sabotaged her laundry because you were “so jealous” of her happiness. Edge had slapped you across your face as soon as you got home to announce his displeasure with your supposed deeds, which left Cinny fretting over the three claw marks on your cheek when he and Clove had come to find you after the yelling was done.

You’d also been repeatedly accused of having men over, and this led to a search of your room and examination of your bed. Razzberry would go over your sheets with a blacklight, Syrup disinterestedly holding the covers up for inspection, though when five successive attempts (one that went over the whole attic to make sure) came up completely empty, those searches stopped.

As he’d left the last search, Razzberry had hissed at you, “I don’t know how you’re doing it, but I know SOMEONE is having romps in this house. We can hear it. And I’m going to catch you at it eventually.”

His brother had looked you over, surprisingly neutral, before following after.

For Syrup at least, you were very sad to think he’d have to find out they were all being cheated on. He, Blue, and Papyrus had never said a cross or unkind thing to you, with the latter two avoiding you entirely most of the time, and Syrup himself just remaining silent. Even when Jennifer did something that she blamed on you (breaking a vase, tearing clothes, ruining meals you weren’t even in the house for), Papyrus and Blue tried very weakly to soften the reaction of the others, seeming highly uncomfortable as various punishments were weighed on you.

So far, as mandated by Sans no matter how much you tried to argue against the false claims, you’d had to pay for two fifty-dollar sweaters, do the dishes while Edge watched you like a hawk after Jennifer purposefully burned a lunch while you were at work, and be forcibly run through the obstacle course in the backyard when Jennifer had cried that you’d called her fat. That last one had made you pass out in the grass from lack of air and exertion, which left you there till Clove could safely teleport out to pick you up and take you inside.

But you were working still. You were making money and Jennifer had at least kept the rent low since she knew you couldn’t pay more than you already were. And you thankfully had a bank account where your check was auto-deposited, letting you withdraw your cash rent (which you also wrote down the date you paid on and texted the date to Cinny for record keeping) without losing your savings. And those savings were going to something very important.

You were going to find a way for Cinny to get his teeth fixed. And some glasses, too.

That’s what you were making all this effort of tracking movements for, was to find out a day you could take him and Clove out of the house and out to get his eyes and mouth checked out and seen to.

“that’s dangerous waters, sunshine,” Clove warned you, but you shook your head.

“I was never told I can’t leave the house, so me going out is not breaking any rules. Me being with you two is not breaking my rules. Me paying for Cinny to finally be able to see and eat without hurting himself is not breaking any of my rules,” you insist, and he smiled so softly at you.

Cinny didn’t make it obvious, of course, that eating hurt his mouth, but you and Clove had both caught him wincing more than once when trying to eat crunchy things. So on a Monday morning when you’d called in for a doctor’s appointment of your own (you decided to get your own yearly eye exam too), the quiet house saw you and the brothers escaping out the front door and down the street to the bus stop two blocks down.

It was thrilling, and Clove was happily looking around. Cinny, however, kept tight hold of your hand and seemed extremely nervous. He tried desperately not to look at the other passengers, wearing a medical mask over his mouth to keep his teeth hidden.

“It’s just a few minutes to the stop by the doctor’s, Cinnamon. I swear it’ll be okay, I’m going to get my exam first to let you see how it’s done.”

He just nodded, but the little old lady across from you smiled, “Oh, is this his first time seeing someone? Just out of stripes?”

She was a green bunny monster, and you smiled, “No, he’s just been reluctant to leave the house.” That had been your agreed on excuse. “But he’s my best friend, so me and his brother here are gonna go with him so he can get some glasses.”

Cinny blushed and leaned over on your head, and the lady ‘aww’d. Clove chuckled , his black beanie hat covering his hole well, “he’s a big softie, so he’s just nervous. We’ve kinda been homebodies since we surfaced.”

“That’s a long time!” the lady nodded, “But it’s good you’re trying to get out more and you have this kind young lady to help you.”

“A-actually,” Cinny finally spoke up, very quietly, “y/n prefers gender neutral terms, ma’am.”

“Oh of course. I’m sorry, dear. I forget sometimes that humans are learning about themselves, too.”

You smile and wave it off, “It’s alright. I oscillate sometimes, so it didn’t bother me. But thank you, anyway. Cinnamon, dear, you’re such a gentleman for trying to help me.”

He sits up a little straighter and you can tell by the movement of his mask that he’s smiling.

The three of you get off the bus, and the bunny lady wishes you good luck.

\--

You arrive at the optometrist’s office and smile. “Hi! I’m Y/N, I called about an appointment set for me and my friend?”

The receptionist nods, “Just fill out these forms and take a seat, since you’re both new patients.”

Cinny took one of the offered clipboards, and you took the other, both filling out the information sheets. Clove had to help Cinny now and again, since he wasn’t sure exactly what the forms said or how to fill out certain parts, but the monster patient sheet was much more straightforward than the one you were filling out since the Monster Healthcare Act had gone through last year. The Kingdom of Monsters had campaigned and won the right to cover the cost of healthcare for all its citizens, and thus Cinny didn’t have to worry about insurance questions, or questions about his marital status (Monster Citizen Privacy Act, passed three years back). That one always confused you on doctors’ forms. Why did it matter if you were married or not?

The doctor called you back, and Cinny came with you, sitting in a chair while the doctor did your exam. “Ah, is this my next appointment?”

“Yeah,” You grin as you stare into the little machine at the picture of the hot air balloon as it comes into focus, “Cinnamon’s never had an exam before, so I thought it might help him to see mine first.”

“Well, monster exams are slightly different, but that’s a thoughtful thing to do.” The kindly middle-aged man smiles at Cinnamon, “You have a very dedicated friend, Cinnamon. Is she the only one with you?”

“No,” he squeaks, blushing, “my older brother is in the waiting room since he wanted to be where he could help me if I need it.”

“Good. Family support is always important, too.” He tells you a puff of air is going to happen, and as usual, even though you know, you still flinch a little.

The doctor continues some very nice conversation while you get your exam, sounding excited when you mention you’re a librarian and talking to both you and Cinny about books. By the time it was Cinny’s turn, you were glad to see your friend was relaxed and comfortable enough that he wasn’t asking for your hand to hold.

“Wow, you went this long without coming to see me? You have some tenacity to stay home, Cinnamon. I’m getting your prescription written out right now so you can get your glasses as soon as possible. You’ll feel so much better when you can see properly.” The kind man handed Cinnamon a paper, “You can take this to any shop that sells prescription glasses and they’ll fit you for any frame type you like.”

“I can pick my own glasses?” your sweet skeleton asked, looking delighted if the little sparkles of orange magic that twinkled around his head were any indication.

“Yes, sir. And I hope to see both of you back in a year to make sure your prescriptions haven’t changed and hear more cool stories,” with a pat on the shoulder, the Doctor sent you and Cinny on your way, your insurance covering the visit so the three of you could shuffle to the next door over in the shopping center to get some glasses.

\--

Cinny had his eyes closed as you and Clove led him out of the shop an hour later.

“you ready to see the surface, paps?” Clove asked softly, looking eager and slightly teary.

“I think so,” Cinny took a deep breath, then opened his sockets and gasped. “OH MY GOD! Y/N, WERE THERE ALWAYS LEAVES ON THE TREES?!”

“Yes, Cinny, there were,” you beam up at him as he looks down and he squeals.

“AND YOU’RE EVEN CUTER THAN I THOUGHT! OH LOOK AT YOUR SWEET LITTLE EYELASHES! OH MY GOD, YOU’RE ADORABLE!” He then turns to Clove, “BROTHER YOU…WELL, YOU’RE THE SAME.”

Clove laughs deeply, and you love the sound, especially seeing Cinny’s sockets crinkle in happiness that his joke went well.

“I’m so glad you like your glasses,” you take his hand. “But we have to get back home before too long. Would you like to have lunch somewhere around here first, though?”

“I DO WANT TO KEEP LOOKING AROUND, BUT…” He touched his medical mask and sighed, “LET’S WAIT TILL WE SNEAK OUT AGAIN AND MY TEETH ARE FIXED. OR AT LEAST ON THE WAY TO BEING FIXED? BEFORE A CELEBRATORY LUNCH?” Cinny was at his full volume and you and Clove both were on cloud nine about it.

“sure, cinny. You’re gonna like looking at all your hard work cleaning with clear eyes, too, I bet,” Clove offered as you all headed to the bus stop.

“OOH! YES! FINALLY I CAN BE SURE I GOT ALL THE DIRT FROM THE CABINET TOPS OFF!”

Clove chuckled a little and gave you a wink with his dead socket, making you grin bigger. This was a big step, and nothing was going to bring you down now.

\--

Coming back into the house, the three of you were discussing what to make for lunch, when someone cleared their throat loudly.

Edge, Sans, Razzberry, and their brothers were all standing by the stairs.

“i thought i was really clear with you, y/n,” Sans looked pissed, but he had his normal white eye lights so it wasn’t quite as upsetting as that first talking to had been.

“You were, Sans,” with Cinny’s hands on your shoulders, and Clove holding your hand with a supportive squeeze, you felt a lot braver. “I don’t believe I’ve broken any of the rules you set out for me.”

“THOSE TWO MANIACS AREN’T SUPPOSED TO LEAVE, YOU IDIOT! DO YOU WANT YOUR ENTIRE TOWN TO BE KILLED AND MADE INTO BRISKET?!” Edge screamed, “IT’S A FUCKING MIRACLE THEY HAVEN’T GOTTEN PECKISH AND RIPPED YOUR ARMS OFF FOR APPETIZERS! THEY EAT HUMANS! HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT?!”

“I do know that.” That shut everyone up and Red’s eye lights went out. “I know that was what happened IN THE PAST for them, and that now they have a choice and would much rather have food that other people enjoy as well.”

“if you haven’t noticed,” Clove sneered at them and carefully stepped just a bit more in front of you than beside you, “there hasn’t been a single incident of us hurting anybody. In the three years we’ve lived in this house, not once have me and paps done anything wrong, or attacked anybody. Or have you guys had your head up your asses too far to see that?”

“ya mouthy jerk, c’mere,” Red stepped forward, but Syrup griped his shoulder hard and held him back, shaking his head no.

“axe, you know you aren’t allowed out of the house,” Sans started, but he got cut off.

“clove. My brother and I want to be called cinnamon and clove from now on. Not those insulting half-assed excuses for nicknames you gave us when we got here. i don’t even have an axe as my default summon, and my brother deserves to be judged for his being instead of the fact his teeth are fucked.” He was growling the words and you realize that while his eyelight is blown wide, the pupil in the center has shrunk to a pinprick.

Cinny’s hands on your shoulders squeeze a little and he murmurs, “maybe you and I should let him handle this. let’s go to the basement.”

“NO,” Edge actually summoned a bone and held it out, “THAT WHORE IS NOT LEAVING UNTIL SHE GETS PUNISHED FOR LETTING YOU DEGENERATES OUT.”

“don’t threaten my brother!” Clove hissed, and you squeaked as a massive thighbone appeared in his hands.

“Sans, please don’t,” Cinny whimpered, and Clove took a few deep breaths before the bone vanished.

“See?” Razzy sighed, “You can’t even handle a simple argument without getting violent. We can’t have you out there where stupid humans will show their racist asses and rile you up enough to lose control like that.”

“But…” Cinny sounded shaky, “But we didn’t encounter anything like that. I just went with Y/N to their eye appointment and had one myself. See?” He gestures to his glasses, “I-I can see now. Everything’s not a blurry mess a-and it really helped seeing Y/N’s exam first. They just were going for their check up and we went with them.”

“we didn’t exactly trust that they wouldn’t be harassed by you clowns before they could get back to us,” Clove added, and you wonder how much of that is true. “seems we were right.”

Papyrus pipes up, “OH, YOUR GLASSES LOOK VERY NICE, CR-“ he coughs and blushes a bit, “CINNAMON.”

“DON’T FUCKING CALL HIM THAT, THAT’S LIKE CALLING A SHARK FLUFFY,” Edge growled at him, making the kinder skeleton cower. “HIS NAME IS CROOKS, IT’S ALWAYS BEEN CROOKS, AND WE AREN’T CHANGING IT.”

“BUT HE DOESN’T LIKE IT AND HIS BROTHER-“

“listen to boss, or I’ll make you,” Red turned his glare on Papyrus, and Sans had to push him back.

“both of you, lay off him. I don’t care what we call them, but they can’t go outside.”

“why?”

Everyone except you and Cinny were looking at Clove like he was an idiot.

“tell me, classic. why in star’s sake can everyone go out but me and my brother? and don’t give me the human-eating bullshit, because your precious witch queen has lived here for a year and we’ve never touched her.”

“Don’t,” Razzy stepped forward, teeth bared, “Insult. Jennifer.”

“I’ll do what I like,” Clove’s voice was flat, uninterested, hardly sounding like himself at this point. “I can shortcut just like any other judge. i’ve got the highest exp in the house, including you, so who are you to say what I can and can’t do?” His grin stretched tight and he laughed a short bark, “I’ve been humoring you to try and keep cinny safe and fed. And now to keep you from bothering y/n as much as I can. but my brother saw the surface properly for the first time today. And he’s going to go out again, and get his teeth fixed so they don’t hurt him anymore. and I DARE you to try and stop me from making that happen. Cause I might go down, but I’m taking at least three of you with me, and I don’t care which three.”

“Clove, stop, please,” you whisper, the idea of a fight happening and losing one of your only two friends breaking your heart.

Cinny swiftly turned you toward the archway and began marching you quick time toward the living room, “This is too dangerous for you to be around, y/n. Let’s get you safe first.”

“YES, RUN LIKE THE BRAINLESS COWARD YOU ARE,” Edge snapped.

That froze him in place, and he released your shoulders. “Y/n, I’m about to get a little scary. Please know it is in no way directed toward you.”

“Okay,” you barely stumble out before he turns on his heels and stands to his full height for the first time you’ve ever seen.

“EDGE,” his full volume makes everyone turn from the skirmish you were sure was about to happen. “DO YOU REALIZE WHO IT WAS WHO MADE THE PLANS FOR EVERY HIGHLY EFFECTIVE TRAP ON THE WAY TO SNOWDIN?”

The sharper cheeked skeleton opened his mouth to answer but Cinny bulldozed on, “AND DO YOU KNOW WHO MADE THE PLANS FOR EXACTLY HOW TO DISTRUBUTE EVERY SCRAP OF FOOD EVENLY AND FAIRLY? WHO SET UP DEFENCES AGAINST AN EMPRESS AND ROYAL GUARD HELLBENT ON CRUSHIING EVERY ONE OF US INTO SUBMISSION?”

He was stalking closer to Edge with even, deliberate steps, and you looked at his face to realize with horror that his sockets were blown wide and whited out to the point magic was wisping out of them.

“WELL? DO YOU, COUSIN?”

Edge swallowed, then answered, “I SUPPOSE IT WAS YOU.”

“YES! IT WAS ME!” he was yelling now, louder than ever and you had to put your hands over your ears. “ I HAD TO DO EVERYTHING AND LEAD THE PEOPLE FOR SEVEN HELLISH YEARS WHILE MY FORMER BEST FRIEND REPEATEDLY MURDERED HER OWN PEOPLE AND TRIED TO KILL MY OWN BROTHER! I HAD TO GO AGAINST EVERYTHING I THOUGHT I HELD DEAR JUST TO LIVE AND KEEP MY CITY ALIVE! I HAD TO MURDER AND MAIM AND BECOME A HIDEOUS SHADOW OF MY FORMER SELF, AND YOU DARE TO QUESTION MY INTELLIGENCE AND BRAVERY? I HAVE MADE MORE HARD CHOICES THAN YOU WILL EVER EVEN CONTEMPLATE, EDGE, AND YOU WILL RESPECT THAT OR I WILL TEAR THIS HOUSE APART WITH MY BARE HANDS AND YOU ARE ALL VERY AWARE THAT I CAN.”

He was furious, and you saw all of the other skeletons in shock. Even Clove looked at least mildly surprised.

Taking a long, slow, deep breath, Cinny smoothed the front of his soft pink shirt, “Papyrus, this is not your fault. I know you don’t want to treat anyone badly. I don’t blame you. But the rest of you,” His swift turn of his skull gave a loud CRACK and everyone winced, “leave Y/N and my brother alone, and stop meddling in our affairs as if you had power over us. I want to be civil with you, but at this point it’s very clear that’s not an option. I’ll be making my dental appointment, and any subsequent follow ups, and Y/n will accompany me, and Clove if he so wishes. Is that understood?”

Papyrus nods very fast, and you see the little drips of orange tears fly off him. He was absolutely petrified and you feel sorry for him being involved in all this. Clove smiles, a genuine, impressed smile, and comes to stand by you as Cinny stomps back.

He takes your hand and murmurs, “I’m sorry you had to see that side of me. I was hoping I wouldn’t ever have to do that again, but that was the last straw. Let’s go calm down and think about lunch, yes?”

“Of course,” you’re so glad to see the embarrassment and worry in his expression instead of that cold fury. Especially knowing he didn’t like that part of himself.

There is nothing but stunned silence left behind you.

\--

He’d never imagined Crooks, no, Cinnamon could become that terrifying. He’d always been so shy and retiring, cringing back when insults were thrown his way.

But Papyrus thought about the outburst, and what was going on, and realized his older self was entirely justified. He’d been insulted, belittled, and basically called a stupid brute since he’d arrived to this world. His brother had not helped in being too lazy to actually control the more unpleasant members of their family from railing against the horror brothers (that name probably was insulting, too, he should think of a new thing to call them) or from antagonizing the new human in the house that clearly had become very dear to the two ostracized skeletons.

That confused Papyrus more than anything, actually.

From what Jennifer had told them, Y/N hated monsters greatly, just being too desperate for a home to care where they lived at this point. Also, they didn’t make friends easy, were unkind, and entirely unredeemable. Which didn’t sit right with him, since he and Blue were both of the mind that everyone can be a good person if they try, but since the others were so against them interacting, it wasn’t like he could do much.

Still, in the weeks following Cinnamon’s new glasses, Papyrus began to watch. He was very skilled at observing people when he put his mind to it, and what he began to see built up the questions in his mind.

He watched Y/N, since she lived in the attic and thus had to come through the entry hall to either leave or get to the basement. She went out early in the morning, usually after having some sort of breakfast conversation in the kitchen with Cinnamon, and returned in the afternoon. She never wore much make up that Papyrus could see, and always dressed very modestly in pants and long sleeved shirts. She also did not leave the house at night, which was odd if they were selling their body for money as Jennifer had said. Instead, Papyrus observed her make her way down to the basement any night that the majority of the others were not in the living room.

She was actually very comfortable with him, if he was guessing, since when it was just him in the living room, Y/N would actually smile and walk through with a little wave his way. That was so encouraging to Papyrus; he loved friendly interactions like that. Yes, actually, if it was him, Blue, or Syrup in the room, even all three, she would seem to perk up and be fine. It was only if any of the rest were there that she would either hesitate or turn back around and go to her room.

This was not the behavior of someone who hated others. This was more the behavior of a normal person who just wanted to avoid being hurt or insulted. But of course, casual observation and actual interaction were two very different sets of data and Papyrus was starting to want the latter also. He didn’t want to believe that Jennifer had lied, no, that couldn’t have been it. It was probably that Y/N was very prickly in conversations and his dear datemate had just misinterpreted the things she said. After all, she had a lot of trouble interpreting his signals of wanting to go out on dates or take her to visit his friends or try out new hobbies together.

So, he just had to watch what Y/N did when interacting with someone, and that someone was usually Cinnamon and his brother so….oh.

Well, Papyrus did notice that he’d been hearing sounds in the kitchen just before leaving for his Saturday evening jog (after another failed attempt at going out with Jennifer), so he decided to secret himself into the kitchen before that time and find out what was happening.

Around the time everyone was gone, when he’d usually have already asked for a date and been shot down again, Papyrus was waiting in the farthest corner of the kitchen. The potted fern that usually sat here was in his lap, shielding him from view a bit since he was also covered by the island in the center of the room.

Y/n walked in from the living room eagerly, grocery bags on your arms, and opened the door, “Cinny! They left! Let’s cook!”

Steps sounded upward and Cinnamon appeared, beaming as he brought an armload of dry ingredients. “Alright! This was a brilliant idea, sunshine, prepping for the week beforehand. The freezer hardly gets used!”

Y/n is bouncing on her heels, laying out fresh produce but keeping one bag off to the side, “I know, right? I was so excited when I found that. Blue and Papyrus are the ones who enjoy the nice-cream, right?”

“Yes,” Cinny nodded and began measuring out some rice, “of course, that’s not to say their brothers don’t also like it, but if those two are anything like Clove, then they try to leave it mostly for their brothers to enjoy on their cheat days. Hmmhmm, oh I miss the days I worried about keeping my slim figure. As if someone of my energy could ever look like Classic does.”

That…was a good point. Papyrus hadn’t considered that his activity alone might be enough to keep his ectobody from building up too much. He should talk to Blue about this, because if it was true, the both of them could possibly experiment a little more with foods and see if there was anything else they enjoyed. Or at least Blue would have no more reason to pout at the burgers Sans and Red brought home. Blue secretly liked grease, as much as he’d deny it, just like Papyrus adored sweets despite denying himself if it wasn’t a cheat day. Hmmm….

“You’re always handsome, Cinny,” said Y/n warmly, and her companion chuckled and gently nuzzled his jawbone against her hair. Papyrus blushed, seeing the soft, casual affection. He wished Jennifer would let him do that.

“Thank you, dear heart, but I’m not exactly ready to accept that moniker yet. Brilliant, yes, creative, of course, and definitely a top tier chef!” Cinny struck a pose and Y/n laughed, both of them then returning to their cooking.

That got Papyrus distracted, the cooking. Both of his observation subjects were just so assured. Cinny’s cuts were precise and confident, but not overly forceful enough for the food to slip away like it did so often when Papyrus tried. Y/n did everything Cinnamon asked of her, and she was the exclusive handler of the meats, again surprising Papyrus. With his experience, Papyrus would have thought Cinnamon would be more qualified, but he did give the instruction for what Y/n was doing. Curiouser and curiouser.

And the whole time, the two spoke with each other, not just on instructions but about various topics. What Y/N was doing at the library (library? That was where she went every day?), how Cinnamon was doing with his new braces (oh that’s what that metal on his teeth was about!), all kinds of things.

Papyrus was learning a lot just sitting here, listening and watching. Monster dental work required a healer to be present, apparently, so they could fuse the intent of movement and healing into the teeth. He wouldn’t have known that, since his smile was picture perfect, but it was interesting. He wondered how that had worked when Red and Syrup had their gold fangs put in, since their homes were so violent. Libraries were more than just places to store books, too. There were orders of new books, that had to be labeled and put into a computer system, as well as movies and newspapers, magazines and audio books! Wowie, he really wanted to go to the library now! Especially the one Y/n was talking about. It was on campus? The place Jennifer went to classes?

Now he wanted to know what kind of classes there were. Maybe he could become a chef there! Or a police officer, or a superhero! Well, probably not that last one…

Or maybe he could be a healer. Syrup had been a healer and he was taking classes on campus to get his license here. Maybe he could be one, too? Papyrus liked the idea of healing a lot more than fighting, which seemed to be all that happened on those police shows Edge liked watching. And on the news. Humans were very divided on the topic of police now, as far as he could tell. Jennifer didn’t like the news, but Razzy tended to watch it.

OH no, he’d gotten distracted in his thoughts and his subjects were on a different topic!

“Cinny, what do you think? Given what I’ve said, should I save up for a car or a new mattress first?” Y/n was talking about money things. Those were both…surprisingly practical options. Jennifer only ever talked about trying to save up for expensive jewelry, or clothing, or phones. Papyrus didn’t really understand that, given that MTT clothes were both lovely and affordable, but Jennifer preferred Dior and Channel instead.

“I’d say a mattress. Those last several years, eight, I think? But in that time you get quality sleep and thus have the chance for promotions and raises that will help you in acquiring a vehicle!” Cinny had put together his ingredients in several zip top bags, with his and his brother’s names on them, “Also, we can start looking for used vehicles together and see what you like and don’t like in the meantime. Gently used vehicles are cheaper and just as reliable as a new one, after all.”

“You are absolutely right,” Y/n nods as they put more prepared foods into bags. “And even if there’s a stain or odd smell or two, that can be cleaned out, yes?”

“Yes! I know Red works in an automotive shop and cleaning is one of the things they do. He’s a mechanic, though.”

“I didn’t know he was so handy. Well, other than finding creative ways to write insults on my things and push me down the stairs,” the hurt in y/n’s voice makes Papyrus wince. How often had that happened? How had he not realized it was happening? That was shameful for a former sentry to allow that kind of bullying to continue in his own house.

“You aren’t giving him any more reactions, so he should stop soon. I hope that’s all he wanted out of that childishness, anyway, because if it was just to hurt your feelings, I’m very concerned for his mental health,” Cinnamon frowned, turning around and suddenly looking straight at his corner. “Papyrus?”

Y/n whipped around quickly and looked scared, and Papyrus couldn’t have that. No, they were perfectly lovely this whole time and he wasn’t going to make them upset. “HELLO, Y/N AND CINNAMON. YOU FOUND MY SECRET HIDING SPOT!”

“Papyrus, why were you hiding?” Cinny was clearly curious as to his motives, and Papyrus felt rather shameful as he realized they were not very good.

“I WAS TRYING TO FIGRE OUT WHERE THE KITCHEN NOISES CAME FROM AND THEN I BECAME ABSORBED IN YOUR CONVERSATION. I APOLOGIZE FOR EAVESDROPPING, AND DON’T PLAN TO DO SO AGAIN. THANK YOU!” He noped out of there as fast as he possibly could, leaving Cinnamon and Y/n very puzzled indeed.


	4. Growth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> things come to a head a bit.
> 
> \--
> 
> Note from Sephy (author):  
> Please, I'm so glad you're all having strong feelings about this fic, but hearing how despicable the other skeletons are (when i just meant for them to be good people manipulated into bad actions) is seriously hurting my mental health.  
> Please try to stay positive in the comments if you can ;^;  
> EDIT:  
> a solution has been found! if you get too mad at someone, just keymash or screech at them in a n0n-word way. example:  
> *screeeeee!* because jennifer

“were you the one who told y/n about the machine?”

Clove looked up at where Sans was standing, in the middle of the basement, between his seat on the sofa and the tv.

“yes.”

“and I’m guessing you told her about the timelines, too?” the guy looked like he was going to rattle apart.

“they kind of already guessed some of it, to be fair. They know what me and cinny went through, and that you and me have the same names. Once we told them about the machine they put the rest together.”

“why did you do that? of all the humans to tell, you tell a greedy, mean spirited, evil human?! who hates monsters?” Classic’s eyelights were gone and he was literally rattling now, loud enough that Cinny poked his head out of his room.

“have you seen y/n do anything aligning with those things you just called them? Even one thing that could be thought of as evil in any way?” Clove kept his voice level, counting his breathing to stay calm. He really appreciated those online resources for therapeutic techniques that y/n had researched for him and Cinny.

“They sabotaged Jennifer’s shirts,”

“Nope.” Clove shut that down. “they were at work.”

“then when they called her fat-“

“They don’t even want to talk to her, much less lie. She’s got some kind of disorder, classic, look up a proper human weight.”

“but the burnt dinner-“

“again, y/n works on weekdays until after noon. Those cameras you installed after cinny got his glasses should tell you that much. it’s not changed.”

Growling in frustration, Sans spat out, “So everything Jennifer says is a lie, is that it?”

“pretty much, yeah.”

That was a bit too much, and Sans got up in Clove’s face, “stop going after her! you’ve been against her from day one and I’m sick of it! do you just not want me to be happy? is that it? you want me to turn into you in this timeline too?”

“if I had a choice, classic, you know I wouldn’t be like this. you think I wanted undyne to break my head open and steal my judgement eye? You think I wanted to lose everything and end up a killer like that kid was in all those resets? No. but it let me and papyrus live and that’s all I cared about.”

“then why are you trying to get us all carted off to some human government lab by going out in public and telling an untrustworthy human our secrets?!”

Cinnamon carefully stepped between the two, “Classic, out of the two humans in this house, Y/n is the one I would trust with my very soul. They are kind, they are loving, and they are patient. Even with all this household has done against them, they stay simply because they do not want to leave me and my brother alone down here. They were willing to use their own savings to get my glasses and braces, you know?”

Sans slumped, looking up at Cinnamon blankly. “I just am trying to keep everything in place. I’m really tired of all these changes just happening to me, and I’m doing everything I can to just get a little peace. Just…tell y/n she has a new rule to not go in the machine room again.”

The brothers looked at each other, and Clove said, “classic, they’re not even home today. They went for the weekend to visit their family.”

“Rented a car and everything,” Cinny added, perplexed.

“well, somebody was snooping in there, and Jennifer wouldn’t go in there. She knows it’s super important to us that she doesn’t.” He vanished, and both Clove and Cinnamon got an ominous feeling.

\--

You came home and went back to work just to keep your mind busy.

That trip home was an emergency and you were exhausted every day. Usually, you’d at least give a glance into the living room when you got in to see if it was feasible to go to the basement after you changed out of your work clothes, but you didn’t even feel like it. How could you? Your grandfather was going to be totally blind by this time next month. You’d had to go home for the weekend to help your mother start cleaning the house and equipping it to cater to his new handicap, and you were going back this weekend to continue. Your mother had let you use her car to come back and dropped your rental off at a nearby site for you so you didn’t have to keep having that expense. She could use the truck grandpa used to drive, after all.

At least Cinny and Clove were waiting for you when you’d come in late Sunday night. You’d actually slept on their sofa that night, not wanting to be alone.

But the pain of helplessness was too much on top of knowing you weren’t wanted by the majority of the household, and you couldn’t bring yourself to even get your shoes off before dropping face first onto your bed and curling up.

Rotten Wednesday this was turning out to be.

Soft steps on your staircase made you groan a little, then ask, “Cinny, I could really use one of your hugs now.”

The steps stopped and you looked up in confusion. Instead of Cinnamon, Syrup was standing there, blushing a little bit and looking sheepish.

“What did I do now?” you asked, about ready to cry.

“nothin’,” he said, rubbing his arm through his thick brown jacket, “papyrus asked me to check on you since you’ve been so quiet all week.”

That was one of the first times you can ever remember hearing him speak, much less to you, but you just went back to your former position. “That’s sweet of him, but I’m really not up to the rest of the house right now, Syrup. Thank you, though.”

There was no sound for a few moments, then you heard and felt someone sit against your bed.

“it was all lies, what Jennifer said.” It wasn’t a question. Syrup had just said it and left that hanging in the air.

“yeah.”

“you work at the library at school, right? I’ve seen you,” his voice was very soft, a bit of a southern USA lilt to it that oozed like warm sap as you dared to hope.

“that’s right. how long have you known?” you’re talking into your pillow. You can’t actually look at him.

“known bout th’ library the whole time. but th’rest I researched out for m’self.” He sighed, and you smelled maple syrup, hearing him drinking it for a moment before he continued, “just got th’ full results of all my checks last week but didn’t know how to start apologizin’ for standing idly by while y’got hurt. Really made me ashamed, bein’ I’m a healer and all.”

“Didn’t know that. Cinny just said you were going to school at the university.”

He chuckled, “I try not to advertise bein’ a softy. Not really smart if someone’s got it out f’r ya. but I guess that’s an old habit I should break since we’re not at home, me’n razzy.”

The sun was filtering through the window as you were looking at it, the beams highlighting the dust motes in the air.

“would it be okay if I CHECK your soul? Wanted to ask rather th’n just do it. kinda rude not to.”

“Go ahead. I can’t guarantee what it’ll say,” you knew about CHECKing from Clove talking about how a fight between monsters or a monter and a human goes down.

You felt the vulnerability, for just a minute or so, and then it was gone.

“holy smokes.”

He actually crawled on all fours around the bed to look you in the face. You smiled a bit when you saw how tightly his browbones were knit together and the worried frown. “I’m so sorry I didn’t say something before. Stars, I will do anything to make it up to you, work my whole damn life to do it.”

Something broke in your chest and you started crying again, opening your arm from around your pillow. Syrup instantly crawled up next to you and held on tight, letting you sob into his shoulder.

“’m sorry. ‘m so sorry. I fucked up bad. We all did. Jus’ let it out. ‘m sorry.”

At least someone was.

\--

Clove didn’t know what to think when he came to investigate what was taking so long for you to come down for dinner.

You were asleep, face blotchy and eyes puffed up from crying, and Syrup was curled around you like a protective shield, surprisingly awake.

“what’re you doing up here, mutt?” clove asked. yeah, derogatory name, but he was ready to pounce in case it was Syrup that’d made you cry.

“apologizin’, mostly,” he murmured, only flinching a little at the name. “should apologize to you, too.”

“what for? Not like you weren’t just going with the flow up here. Cinny and I both know you hate conflict,” stepping closer, Clove saw you were still in your work clothes. Damn, you just kept getting more depressed with what had gone on at home. “were they crying when you got here?”

“almost. Mistook me for cinnamon an’ asked if I’d give them a hug,” Syrup’s hold on you was light, just around your waist and shoulders. Good, he wasn’t getting handsy with you. “finally got up the courage to confess I knew Jennifer was lyin’ about’em and asked for a confirmation CHECK.”

“ah.” Even Clove and Cinny had never CHECKed you, but he understands why Syrup would need to. Fell universes were not places of trust. “and?”

“made me wanna cry, too.” He looked up, the little orange lights in his sockets meeting Clove’s big red one, “clove, ‘m so sorry for not fixin’ your nicknames or doin’ anything about what was happenin’ with y/n here. was too damn scared. ‘m sorry an’ I wanna fix it.”

“keeping them company when they were upset is a good start,” Clove carefully picked you up out of Syrup’s hold, getting a sleepy mumble before you settled in his arms. “come to the basement and we’ll talk about it while I wake them up for dinner.”

“okay. thanks for the chance,” he smiled a little, shy, anxious. Clove smirked. Geeze, he really was a Papyrus under all that sharpness.

“c’mon, you nerd.” He vanished in a shortcut and was not disappointed when Syrup followed suit.

\--

You were happy when Syrup joined you and the boys for dinner.

He was nervous, as were you, but Cinny played a perfect host, keeping conversation going as Clove helped loosen both you and Syrup up with puns and jokes, despite Cinny playfully complaining.

It felt good, welcoming someone new into your little world and finding that you LIKED him. Syrup was sweet, and when you asked how he stood having Razzberry as a brother, he sighed.

“y/n, hon, you only know him in captain of th’ guard mode. That ain’t my brother, that’s m’boss. Nah, my BROTHER is the guy who sneaks inta my room after everybody’s asleep and makes sure I brushed m’teeth and hugs me goodnight. He raised me, darlin’, an’ he’s my everything. I am who I am cause razzy gave up bein’ a kid to make sure I was safe. He works hard t’keep it that way, too, an’ that didn’ change just cause Jennifer threw a fit when she found us talkin’ in his room one night when she was tryin’ ta do some kinda sexy surprise or somethin’. Called us incestuous gays and didn’t talk t’either of us again till razzy got her a diamond bracelet an’ I scrounged up enough for a necklace.”

“THAT’S AWFUL!” Cinny had slipped into his comfortable volume again but amended himself quickly, “Family bonds are sacred. Does she not understand that?”

“after the rivalry she started between bro and edge, I don’t think so.” Syrup shrugs and you shake your head in amazement. “she’s even got red and edge bickering now just by constantly comparing them to each other. Tried to do it with me’n razzy but I’m too shameless and bro’s not gonna take comparisons to me seriously.”

“does she want the house to implode from angry skeletons? Cause that’s how it looks from here,” Clove has the most confused look on his face.

“maybe?” Syrup fiddled with his jacket’s zipper. “I know she likes lying to us, and I know she’s ignoring pap and blue by making excuses not to go out with them. Tracked it last week and she turned them down every time they asked for a date.”

“But…but they’re the sweetest guys in the house other than Cinny?” you gasp, shocked. “They’re so kind, even if she’s just manipulating them, surely it’d be nice to go out with someone who genuinely likes to have fun?”

“that’s what I thought, too,” Syrup throws up a hand in exasperation, “yeah, they’re energetic and a little yell-y, but they’re honest an’ super sweethearts. But I guess they’re too innocent or somethin’? I dunno. Guess she’s more interested in whoever she makes noise with every time bro thinks it’s you.”

There was a very sour tone behind that last sentence, and Clove asked softly, “so she is for sure cheating on you guys?”

“yeah.” Syrup sighed, rubbing his sockets. “when it happened the first time and it wasn’t y/n, I checked the next time. Some human guy was in her room, but they didn’t notice me when I shortcutted in.”

Even though you suspected it, the second hand horror and revulsion of the confirmation hit you hard. “Good grief, she really is a witch. Evil.”

“oh yeah,” Syrup had little tears at the edges of his sockets, but he laughed as they fell, “forgot you guys named her that. the witch! Nyeheh, it fits so well! Enchants everybody then poisons us from inside. Wicked witch is perfect for her!”

Cinny and Clove just quietly pull him into a hug from their place on the sofa as his laughter turns to sobbing. “i-I haven’t been able to tell anybody. They act so happy I just….i don’t want them to hate me for the news. O-or not believe me.”

Clove shushes him gently, “hey, it’s alright. we know you’re telling the truth. You know you are. you’re okay, papyrus. you’re doing the best you can. it hurts when someone’s not faithful or open. I know. you’ll be okay.”

The lanky skeleton curled up tight and Clove and Cinny stayed with him as you cleaned up the dishes, heartbroken for Syrup and the secret pain he’d been living with.

Your soul was burning with the need for JUSTICE.

\--

Razzy didn’t know what to do when Syrup didn’t come to dinner that night. Or the next. Or any subsequent meals till the weekends for three weeks.

Yes, every time he checked, his little brother was in his room by midnight, asleep and safe, but where was he going?

Finally, with Jennifer out doing shopping with Edge and his own duties with his work as a security officer done, he was able to ask.

Syrup was on his personal computer, playing a game about blocks or something, or maybe bees? He heard Honey’s voice out of the headset as Syrup said he had to stop for a sec. “hey, bro, what’s up?”

“Syrup,” Razzy looked at the headset and it was dutifully muted so no one would be privy to their conversation. “You haven’t been eating with the family the last few days. Is something wrong?”

He knew that look, the skull going ashen, the eye lights shrinking and darting. Syrup had been hiding something and it was bothering him immensely.

“Brother,” Razzy frowned a bit, “you know you can tell me anything that’s bothering you. I don’t care what it is, I’ll listen.”

“Sans I…” he swallowed and shut his sockets tight, a light scattering of magic beading on his skull, “I want to break up with Jennifer.”

Shock was clear to say the least, but Razzy attempted to breathe through his initial instinct of outrage on behalf of his datemate. “Alright. Can I know why or is it something between the two of you?”

“It’s a lot of things, Sans. I’m sorry.”

“No,” sliding into his role as Syrup’s only real parental figure, Razzy pushed his own feelings aside, “No, Papyrus, it’s alright. Each of us has to decide what’s best for them and if you don’t believe you and Jennifer are compatible anymore, then that is your choice to make. I just don’t quite understand why. Everything seemed fine before now?”

Syrup fiddled with a hole in the knee of his pants as he spoke, a clear sign he was feeling guilty, “Sans, she’s cheating on us.”

“I don’t think so, after all, surely Edge would know-“

“No.” Syrup looked up at him. “Sans, every time you’ve said it was Y/n making noise, I’ve checked. The sounds are coming from Jennifer’s room. The first night I even went in and there was a human guy in there.”

Sockets wide, Razzy felt himself reeling. “A-alright. That is…more than adequate grounds for ending a relationship.”

“It’s not just that. I know she lied about Y/n, too.”

“Now, brother, you don’t need to add false charges-“ Razzy started, but Syrup shook his head.

“It’s not fake! I know Y/n works at the library on campus. I saw them there long before Jennifer introduced them to us. Check the employee listings, you’ll find them there. And knowing that, I started digging, like you told me to when I was little,” Syrup’s eyes were begging for support, but Razzy just couldn’t imagine why Jennifer would lie about that. But he could imagine Y/n and her sinister duo getting to his soft-hearted brother and filling his head with false information.

“Are you 100% sure?” his expression hardened and Syrup looked panicked.

“Sans, look.” He pulled up several pages from a folder marked ‘research’, all of them related to Y/n. A local paper from a small town several hours away announcing their graduation from the masters program, the employee photographs with Y/n among them, a background check website with Y/n’s records pulled up, all of them screaming that Syrup was telling the truth.

But Razzy just….he couldn’t accept it. No, he was a former captain of the Royal Guard in a Fell universe. He had guarded his soul jealously all his life so Syrup would be safe and no one would infiltrate their family in exactly the manner his little brother was insinuating Jennifer did. No, this had to be a mistake. Surely this was all falsified? But no, all of Syrup’s sources were genuine and well respected, just like Razzy had taught him so long ago, when they were just getting started on their own. Research someone before you trust them…he’d never researched Jennifer, had he? No, because originally she was Classic’s datemate, and thus beneath his notice.

Confusion and rage were building in Razzy’s chest, and Syrup saw it coming, “Sans, please. I’m telling the truth.”

“I know you think you are,” Razzy turned away and went to the door. “But I just can’t accept that. I’m going to do my own research, and until then I want you to stay away from Y/n.”

“n-no.”

You could have heard a feather hit the floor in the few seconds Razzy stood in Syrup’s doorway.

“What?”

Syrup stood up. “no, sans. for once, you’re in the wrong and I’m not going to hurt them anymore. I’ve been eating with cinny and clove because I don’t wanna see Jennifer anymore, and I’m gonna keep doing it. y/n let me in when they were hurt and I’m not betraying them after I stood silent for so long.”

Razzy’s eye lights went out as he turned to look at Syrup, “then so be it. I’ll protect you whether you like it or not.”

Before he could do anything, Syrup felt himself become heavy with blue magic, and his door lock itself. There was nothing he could do to warn anyone that his brother was on a rampage.

\--

You didn’t know what to do when you looked up and saw Razzy standing in front of your counter at the library.

“Oh. Razzberry. Hello,” you greeted him and got nothing more than his military stance and an icy stare.

“Y/n. Please come with me. Something has happened at home and I need to speak with you. It’s about Syrup. Can we talk somewhere private?” His tone was clipped, clearly angry, but then again he was never anything but angry if he was speaking to you. But if it was about Syrup, you wanted to hear about it.

“Um, yes, right this way.” You waved to get your coworker’s attention to man the desk, which she did, and you led Razzberry up to the fifth floor where there were private meeting rooms. Was this smart, probably not. But you at least had a pager that could notify your coworkers that you needed help in an emergency.

Walking swiftly, his heeled boots clicking on the brick-patterned concrete of the lobby floor, both of you went up in the elevator in silence.

The meeting rooms were empty, since there were no scheduled study groups at this time of day, and you went into the first one on the left side.

“What’s going on? Is he alright?” you ask, but the air leaves your lungs as you are lifted by the soul from the floor. You feel it pulse as the world goes black and white, leaving nothing but a highlighted image of the skeleton in front of you.

You are in a FIGHT with Razzberry.

Frantic, you CHECK him.

*Razzberry (Fellswap Sans)

*LV 12 ATK 365 DEF 890

*he’s trying to convince himself you’re the villain to avoid heartbreak and guilt. But that doesn’t mean he’s not still very dangerous.

“You wasted your opportunity, human,” he growls, using his magic to slam you into the four walls of the room painfully. Your HP, a glowing 100 at the beginning, drops to 82. He was going easy on you maybe? You don’t know your own stats.

Your turn. ACT -> Question

“Why are you doing this to me?” you choke.

“Syrup seems convinced that Jennifer is the one at fault, but that can’t be true. There’s no way that anyone could dupe me so totally.”

He shoots tiny bones at your soul, and you barely manage to figure out how to dodge most of them. Two still hit you and your HP is down to 64.

ACT -> Tell the Truth

“But she did lie. She said I was a prostitute, right? But I work here. You found me here.” You don’t feel so good with your HP almost halved.

He replies with only silence, and his number of bone bullets are halved. You dodge them all this time.

ACT -> Reason

“Syrup told me that you raised him. That he loves you so much that he was afraid to tell you about Jennifer cheating. Because he didn’t want to ruin your happiness. And because he was scared of you not believing him.”

Razzy’s silence now came to you as more attentive, but his attack was back at full strength and you got hit again. HP 56.

ACT -> Plead

“Razzberry, please. I don’t want to hurt anybody. Please stop this.”

The bone bullets go on either side of your soul, not hitting you.

MERCY -> Spare

You spare Razzy. He doesn’t accept it.

“How do you expect me to believe you?”

The attacks continue to avoid your soul.

MERCY -> Spare

“Am I supposed to just accept that I failed him?”

Only a few bone bullets fly around the edges of the area.

MERCY -> Spare

You spared Razzberry. He accepts your MERCY.

Gained 0 EXP 0 G

The air goes out of you again as you fall to the floor.

Razzy stares at you for a moment, then shortcuts away. You finally cry and press your pager button.

\--

Cinny answered the phone as soon as your number and ringtone popped up.

“Hello, dear heart! You’re calling early!”

“Is this Cinnamon?”

That was not your voice, and he immediately became very concerned, “Yes, this is Cinnamon. I am Y/n’s roommate. Who are you and why did they need you to call me?”

Clove sat up where he had been lounging on the living room sofa while Cinny was working on dusting the room.

“I’m Y/n’s coworker. A skeleton came to the library and they got into a fight. She doesn’t want to go to security, but she agreed to take a week off. You or someone named Clove need to come get her. She’s too upset to get herself home.”

“I’ll be right there, but I will warn you, I am also a skeleton monster, as is Clove, my brother. We will both be there in a few moments, and thank you for taking care of Y/n in the meantime.” He closed his phone and looked to his brother. “You’ll need to teleport us to the campus. Someone went to Y/N’s library and attacked her. It was one of the others.”

Clove instantly grabbed Cinny’s hand and they were at the clocktower near the center of campus. Getting their bearings, the two rushed through the confused students and into the library.

A small, sizable woman was at the counter, looking concerned, as Cinny scrambled up to her, “Hello, ma’am. I am Cinnamon, I spoke on the phone with someone about Y/N? Are they alright?”

“Oh!” The short blonde bob of the woman bounced as she sighed in relief, “I made her stay in the back so she wouldn’t be upset if anybody else came. And I’m guessing this is Clove? I’m the one you talked to. I’m her supervisor, Kristie.”

“Hello, Kristie, I wish we could have met under better circumstances.” Cinny gave a sad smile, and Kristie bustled back, coming out with a pale, shaky Y/n on her arm who sobbed and reached out as soon as they saw Cinnamon.

He gently lifted them into his arms, and Clove said, “thanks for helping them, kristie. They mean everything to us,” as he took the offered bag that belonged to Y/n.

“She means a lot to us here, too, so we’re going to try and keep that other skeleton out of here from now on, at the very least. They’re off for a week, let them rest and recuperate and we’ll see them when it’s safer.” Kristie frowned as Clove nodded, and left with Cinny.

The two walked to the parking lot on the north side of the campus, where they knew Y/n had parked their bike, grabbing it before teleporting back.


	5. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's time for the fallout

Once Cinny and Clove got you home, they went straight up to your room, grabbing you some pajamas and letting you change in the bathroom before taking you back up and locking the door behind them.

“While I fashion us a blanket fort,” Cinnamon had already dug a box of old quilts out of the miscellaneous detritus of the attic, “please, if you can, tell us what happened?”

Clove was curled up on the bed with you, humming a soft song that you felt was so familiar but couldn’t place. As you came down from your total panic after Razzy left, you slowly explained, “Razzy came to the library. He said something had happened, about Syrup,” you had to swallow to wet your throat, “asked to speak privately, so I took him to the, to the meeting rooms upstairs.”

“easy, sunshine,” Clove’s deep, scratchy voice soothed as his thumb stroked over the back of your head. “don’t push yourself. Catch your breath.”

Deep breaths, you reminded yourself, and after a moment, you were able to continue. “I’d just asked what was wrong when he pulled me into an encounter and slammed me around the room by my soul.”

Both skeletons froze.

“He made you FIGHT?” Cinny barely squeaked.

“Yeah,” you shook as Clove held you tighter. “I…I didn’t know what else to do at first so I CHECKed him. He’d…he was trying to prove to himself I was the bad guy because…because he found out about Jennifer from Syrup.”

Clove’s hand stilled on your head, and Cinny kept busying himself with the fort.

“I didn’t know how to dodge at first and it hurt when his bullets hit me. I can’t see any damage but by the end my HP was at fifty something from a hundred. I finally was able to use MERCY enough he left.”

“Brother,” Cinny said softly. “Please go check and make sure nothing has happened to Syrup.”

Clove didn’t say anything, but you felt his teeth rub gently against your forehead before he got up and vanished.

\--

Opening Syrup’s door, he found his cousin stuck on the ground with blue magic, quickly dispelling it with his much stronger, EXP powered version.

“syrup, are you okay?” Clove looked him over critically.

“clove, you have to find y/n, he didn’t believe me!”

Sighing, Clove gave him a pat on the shoulder, “they’re already home, syrup. Your brother pulled them into a FIGHT, but they talked him down before they lost all their hp. They’re upstairs with bro right now.”

“Thank stars!” Syrup was rattling, his nerves shot. “clove, I’m scared. He’s never done this before. He’s never just snapped or pinned me like that. that’s not my brother. what has Jennifer done to him?”

Clove didn’t know, but he helped the younger skeleton to his feet and guided him back up the steps to the attic.

“Y/n!” Syrup rushed to your side, finding you and Cinny both curled up in the biggest blanket fort Clove had ever seen. It was how Cinny handled his nightmares before they came to this timeline, and it worked very well now as a safe, small place for you to recover from your first FIGHT.

The three members of his group that needed protecting were together and safe.

Now Clove could go hunting without distraction. He disappeared in a shortcut without a sound.

\--

You were a little asleep when Syrup yelped your name and crawled into the nest of pillows and quilts with you, Cinny, and your TV turned on to a VHS of the Care Bears from the 80’s. Cinny had found the tape and player, somehow. You didn’t mind.

“Syrup,” you sleepily smiled at him, and he whined as he looked you over.

“your hp is nearly in half! Good stars, he must have been going full force if he did that much damage with your defense so high…” You didn’t know what he was talking about for a second, then winced. Oh.

“It didn’t do as much damage as I was expecting. I thought he was going easy on me.”

“ha, nope,” both of Syrup’s hands begin glowing green as he presses them gently just over your heart, “he was going full out. you’ve got the highest defense stat I’ve ever seen on a human; you’re really strong and I’m so glad.”

The soreness in your limbs that had pervaded since the FIGHT eased as you felt his warm magic seep into your skin, and Cinny whispers, “Thank you, Syrup. I’m too stressed to do a proper healing job right now.”

“Understandable. I’m only okay because I’ve trained to heal through stress before,” he lifted his hands and flopped next to you in the nest. “but you’re okay, y/n, right? nothing else happened?”

“nope. I was scared, but I’m okay now,” you idly pet the fluff on his jacket hood, and he gently holds your hand in place with both of his own.

“good. I already think I lost my brother, I don’t want to lose my only human friend, too.”

Cinny’s brow bones creased slowly, “Speaking of brothers, where is mine?”

“huh?” Syrup blinked, “he brought me up here. I thought he was just outside standing guard.”

The realization hit both skeletons at the same time, and they both let you go to scramble out as Cinny hissed, “HE’S GONE HUNTING!”

\--

Razzy didn’t know how Axe had found him, in this secluded area in the woods behind the house, but he was prepared.

Enraged as he was, the blows were erratic, coming hard and fast as he teleported around with that massive club.

“I GET IT! I’M AN IDIOT AND DESERVE THIS!”

“you deserve to dust!”

This was the most intense confrontation Razzy had faced since coming to this world, and the many months of not being as on guard were showing. He was pulling things too close, having too little space between himself and the devastatingly powerful strikes of pure hate coming his way.

“I DO! YOU’RE RIGHT!”

“then stop dodging!”

“NOT UNTIL MY BROTHER IS SAFE!”

Growling, Axe finally laid off, glaring, “you’re saying you’d honestly let me kill you if you knew syrup was safe.”

“YES.” he had to be honest. “I’VE FAILED HIM UTTERLY AS A BROTHER AND A PROTECTOR. I LET SOMEONE INTO OUR HOME, INTO MY SOUL AND HIS LIFE, THAT HURT HIM AND MANIPULATED US. I LET A DEVIL COME INTO MY BED AND HIS. I DON’T DESERVE ANOTHER DAY AFTER A FAILURE THAT EGREGIOUS.”

“you’re talking at your full volume,” Axe noted, leaning on his club. “when you went to that library, were you intending on killing y/n?”

“NO.” Razzy sighed, “I INTENDED ON LEAVING THEM WITH ONE HP AND SCARING THEM OUT OF OUR HOME FOR GOOD.”

“you were a captain; you’d have that kind of control.” The single red light in Axe’s head scanned over Razzy as he knelt in place, accepting his fate. “was it to force your brother back with the witch?”

“I’m ashamed to say part of me wanted that, yes. if we share a mate, we won’t be separated. But the majority of my mind told me that was not happening and I just wanted things not to change,” Razzy was tired now, adrenaline leaving as he sank into the sorrow at the bottom of his soul. “if y/n left, everything that had begun to shift would go back to what it was, that was my thought. Its incredibly narrow minded and stupid, but the other option, the truth, was that I had allowed Jennifer to poison my brother’s happiness, bend me to her will, and I was none the wiser to her deception.”

“and that was too painful to allow,” picking up his club, letting it vanish, Clove squatted in front of his supposed victim. “you need to accept the truth whether you like it or not. You hurt my human, you deserve to pay for it. how are you going to make them feel safe when you live in their home with them? Tell me a good plan and I might be willing to let you live through it.”

Before a word was uttered, Cinny and Syrup burst out of the underbrush and pulled the two apart.

“oh. hey bro,” Clove looked up at him. “syrup help you find this spot?”

“YES! AND I’M VERY GLAD HE DID BECAUSE WE DON’T NEED MORE ANIMOSITY!” There was panic in his face, and Clove felt his soul sting. He’d made his brother scared again.

“razzy, why did you do this?” Syrup’s voice cracked at the end, kneeling in front of his older brother and looking him over in fear. “you never lost control of yourself like that before. Is Jennifer really worth risking your freedom? Your life for? They could lock you up for FIGHTing. It’s against the law, Sans, why did you do that?”

Looking Syrup over, Razzy slumped more, “It felt easier than accepting how much I’d failed us both. Anger was easier than guilt. But I’ve ruined everything and I’m sorry, brother. I’m just going to accept my punishment and hope that I can at least have you visit my gravesite or something.”

“NO ONE IS DUSTING TODAY. EVEN IF YOU DESERVE IT FOR TRYING TO HURT Y/N, WE AREN’T DOING THAT ANYMORE. NO MORE KILLING. RIGHT, BROTHER?” Cinny raised his browbones at Clove, who nodded. “BUT WE WILL HAVE TO PUNISH YOU AND YOU WILL HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO REDEEM YOURSELF.”

“uh,” Syrup just sat down and pulled his brother close, “I have an idea. I don’t like it, medically speaking, but it would be a punishment and maybe help y/n not be afraid.”

“what’s the idea, little pup?” Clove asked, getting Syrup to snort a bit and ease a bit of tension.

“when we were all first getting started, edge and bro got hold of some magic suppression cuffs and collars. We still have them, so maybe he could wear them at home? He needs to be at his best at work, but if he’s got them on at home, he couldn’t even make an attack around y/n.” Syrup looked up at the other skeletons, as Razzy just laid limp in his hold.

“those were for us, weren’t they?” Clove just says so, not letting Syrup answer, “seems like it could work. you up for that, criminal?”

Razzy nodded, not moving, and Syrup hesitantly picked him up, “uh…I’ll just…I’ll get them and set them up. I’ll need to monitor him anyway so he doesn’t accidentally dust his fingers….”

“It would probably be a blessing so I can’t mess up again.”

“bro, no,” Syrup sighed, “you guys should probably get back to y/n. tell them I’m sorry, but I have to take care of my family first.”

“THAT’S HOW IT OUGHT TO BE, SO I’M SURE THEY’LL FORGIVE YOU,” Cinny picked Clove up like a flour sack and held him under his arm. “NOW, YOU TEND TO YOUR SERIOUSLY MISGUIDED BROTHER AND I’LL TEND TO MINE. AND Y/N.”

The two walked in separate directions, Syrup teleporting a few steps out and Cinny marching back to the backyard on foot.

\--

Y/n had fallen asleep by the time the brothers returned to the attic, still snuggled into the blanket fort/nest Cinnamon had made.

Crawling in, both of them laid down on either side of the human, using their bodies to shield them further from the world.

“Sans, I want to ensure this never happens again,” Cinny whispered, gathering a loose blanket and covering them all up. “We have to protect Y/n from the others from now on. I don’t want them to have to stumble their way through a FIGHT like that again.”

“I agree, but what can we do other than stay with them while they’re home? Syrup can go on campus with them but they’d resent it if they were watched 24/7.” Clove was facing y/n, eye light very hazy and small. “they’re an adult, paps. And very independent at that.”

Sighing, Cinny curled up a little, resting his forehead on top of y/n’s head, “I guess we’ll just have to be more assertive here at home, then. The others have to know we won’t accept this kind of behavior any longer.”

“and when the witch throws her fit?”

“Jennifer has no power over us,” Cinny’s statement was flat, a pure fact. “I’m going to pretend she doesn’t exist from now on. Ignore all her screaming and only speak to our family.”

Clove nodded, gently twining his fingers with yours as he watched your eyelids moving as you dreamed, “so y/n’s family now?”

“Oh yes, Sans.” Cinny felt the purr welling up in his ribs along with a deep warmth, “They have been for a very long time now.”

That pleased Clove, and he dared, just barely, to purr as well.

\--

“and they aren’t chafing your carpals?”

“No, Syrup,” Razzy muttered.

“okay stop,” Syrup squatted right in front of his brother as the last of the magic suppressors was clipped on. “you messed up, I messed up, we both hurt Y/n either by action or inaction, but just because you made a mistake doesn’t mean you have to just shut down.”

“I’ve become an irredeemable terror, and I’ve led a viper to you. How is that not shutdown worthy?” Razzy answered, looking unmoved.

“well, mostly because it’s not about you.”

That got his brother to sit up, and Syrup continued, “bro, you scared the sh-“ Razzy’s eye lights brightened and he changed tack, “crap out of me when you left me here, and yeah, you have been more than evil toward y/n. but we’re the ones who’re hurt here. I get you’re disappointed in yourself, but that’s a good thing. You feel bad because you ought to feel bad and now you can work on yourself, so it doesn’t happen again.”

“Wow, brother, amazing pep talk,” the word ‘sarcastic’ was an understatement.

“not trying to make you feel better, I’m trying to light a fire under your coccyx so you stop moping and act like my brother again,” Syrup sat on the floor with a thump. “My brother acknowledges his mistakes, apologizes, and then makes the steps to ensure it doesn’t happen again. He listens to me, gets super excited about coming home and getting in his pajamas, and tries to do his best every day, knowing when to be cruel and when to be kind.” A few tears started up in his sockets, “I miss him. can I have him back please?”

Finally giving in to his cracking soul, Razzy sobbed and flung himself forward, apologizing profusely and clinging to Syrup’s neck. Syrup held on tight and let their bones rattle as they were both shaking, “i’ve got you, bro. we’ll work on it.”

As the sobbing turned to soft hiccups, Syrup added, “you’re still my hero, bro. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” came the whispered response.

\--

“What are those hideous things?” Jennifer scoffed at dinner that night. “And I thought you said you were going to find your brother and get him back here?”

Razzy took a deep breath, putting down his fork after he’d been struggling to keep up the appearance he was fine. “Jennifer, he won’t be coming back. He asked me to give you a letter, though, and I will do so after we finish our meal.”

She was about to respond when he added, “And as for the bracelets, these are magic suppressers.”

“WHAT?” Edge reached out and grabbed Razzy’s wrist, looking it over, “WHY IN HELL’S NAME WOULD YOU EVER PUT THOSE ON? THOSE ARE FOR CRIMINALS!”

“Well, after how I have behaved of late, I felt it necessary.” He didn’t even have the strength to pull his arm away, body unused to the restricted flow.

“Oh? Oh,” Jennifer purred, “is it a bedroom thing?”

“No,” Razzy denied flatly, “it is, in fact, a repentance thing. I have done something unconscionable and until the person I wronged is satisfied, I will be wearing them while at home.”

“razz, you’re a dill weed, but surely you can’t have done anything that bad,” Honey quirked his brow bone at him.

“I pulled y/n into a FIGHT.”

The table went silent in shock, then Red shrugged, “well, not like we liked the bitch anyway. Where’d you hide the body?”

Sans groaned, “please tell me you just did it to scare them away. That you didn’t actually hit them?”

“They are quite alive and were healed. These manacles are my penance for undue violence. Until they feel safe in our home again, I will wear them,” Razzy growled at little at the end.

Jennifer huffed, “I’m proud you tried to put them in their place, but why does it matter if someone like them feels safe? They’re horrible! And I wouldn’t be surprised if they kidnapped your brother.”

That got a lot of the table tense, but Razzy’s louder retort had them shocked, “JENNIFER, MY BROTHER IS PERFECTLY SAFE, UNLIKE YOUR POSITION AS MY MATE.”

“What did you just say to me?!” she snapped back.

“I forgot you were rather bad at listening,” Razzy stood and sighed. “Syrup is fine, he is happier eating away from you, and I am certain of this. Also, I am no longer certain we should be an item after research turned up some very unpleasant facts about your character.”

“STOP BEING VAGUE AND STOP ANTAGONIZING OUR MATE, YOU IDIOT!” Edge went to grab Razzy again but he jerked back now that he was standing.

“How dare you! When I’m nothing but sweet and hardworking!” Jennifer screeched, crocodile tears starting. “Where did all this come from? What research? I’ve never done anything wrong!”

Razzy glared as he walked away, “THE ONLY PERSON WHO DID NOTHING WRONG NEVER DID ANYTHING.”

\--

Blue and Papyrus were washing the dishes after the very awkward dinner. After Razzy left, Jennifer had burst into tears and leaned on Red and Edge, asking them to talk sense into Razzy and make him apologize.

“I DON’T THINK HE’S GOING TO APOLOGIZE,” Papyrus stated.

“I DON’T EITHER,” Blue sighed, looking genuinely concerned. “I’M ALSO KIND OF WORRIED ABOUT SYRUP AND Y/N. IT’S NOT LIKE RAZZY TO FLY OFF THE HANDLE THAT BADLY, BUT IT’S ALSO NOT LIKE SYRUP TO DO SOMETHING WITHOUT HIS BROTHER. THINGS ARE GETTING SO CONFUSING AND IT KIND OF HURTS?”

“oh,”

The soft voice from the basement door made them turn, and Syrup was standing there with four empty plates. “hey guys. I was just brining up our dishes but I guess dinner ran long.”

“SYRUP!” Blue darted over from drying plates and hugged him.

“HE WAS WORRIED ABOUT YOU BEING MISSING. HONESTLY, I WAS, TOO. BUT YOUR BROTHER SAYS YOU’RE OKAY?” Papyrus asks. He knows for certain that if he was down there with Cinny and Clove, Syrup must have needed the peace that seemed to follow the horror brothers around now that Y/n was here.

“yeah, guys, I’m good.” He gave Blue a few pats on the skull, which reassured the shorter skeleton enough that he let go. “just…did my brother give Jennifer the letter yet?”

An unholy scream echoed through the house, and Syrup winced, “that’d be yes then.”

“THAT WAS JENNIFER’S VOICE. HOW DOES HER SCREAMING LIKE THAT MEAN YES?” Blue seemed torn between reassuring himself of Syrup’s safety and going to help Jennifer.

“cause I broke up with her in it,” Syrup sighed, handing the dishes he carried to a shaken Papyrus.

“YOU…BROKE UP WITH HER?” Papyrus was a little shocked but something in him sparked happily, despite that causing guilt. Syrup was free of this confusing, hectic mess now. That part of him that was pleased grew a little bit as Syrup nodded, sighing in relief.

Blue relaxed a little, hearing Jennifer yelling and arguing with people in the entry hall, she was alright enough, “BUT WHY? DID SOMETHING HAPPEN?”

“yeah, guys, but i….look, your relationship with her is your own and what I know might…mess with that. if you’re happy, I don’t wanna mess that up,” he curled in on himself a bit, “and me telling bro is what set him off on y/n, so I’m real reluctant.”

Papyrus and Blue both smiled at him, and Papyurs said gently, and quietly since Jennifer was getting louder, “Syrup, if you know something that was enough to get you to leave, it’s probably particularly important. I understand your reluctance, but I for one want to know how you came to your decision.”

He looked at Papyrus, then looked at Blue, then groaned softly, “okay, but then I’m gonna go hide cause she sounds so mad. Uh…I kinda…have caught her cheating on us.”

Both of the other skeletons froze, and Blue’s eye lights went out.

“What…kind of cheating?” he squeaked as Papyrus gently set down the dish in his hand, shaking too much to keep washing.

“the…the sexual kind.” Syrup seemed sad to say it out loud. “I’m so sorry guys.”

Blue’s lights didn’t come back, his hand curling into a fist before he hugged himself. “I….I knew she didn’t want me, but knowing she went somewhere else….where did this happen?”

“In our house,” Papyrus choked a bit before he continued. “Those are the noises Razzy was blaming Y/n for. Oh stars, and it’s happened so often…”

Syrup quickly hugged them both close, “hey, guys, I know. i…..it hurts so bad.”

“But she would go with you before!” Blue whimpered, “She…she laughed when I asked to be intimate….”

“oh stars, blue….” Syrup held him tighter and Papyrus began rubbing his hand on his back. “she’d been saying no to me, too, though…”

“I…I never got the courage to ask,” Papyrus sighed, and then shook his head, orange tears flying off from the force, “BUT! NEVER MIND ALL THAT. I HAVE DISHES TO DO, AND YOU ARE FREE, NOW.”

Blue wasn’t quite ready to let go, even as Papyrus bustled back to dishes. Syrup knelt to hold him closer. “hey, blue, me’n milord are here if you need to talk about it. he knows, and ‘m sure he’d be willing to listen if you asked’im. He’s a lot more clear-headed now.”

“Syrup…” He sniffled and squeezed a little more, “this isn’t how it’s supposed to be. Love was supposed to be happy and fun….but it just hurts.”

“I know. you’re right, this is not how love is supposed t’work,” Syrup gently clunked his forehead to his cousin’s skull, “s’pposed to support each other, ‘n laugh together, an’ be best friends on top of romance. None of this was right. ‘m just sorry nobody wised up in time for ya not t’get hurt.”

Finally letting go, Blue backed up and asked, “Papyrus, c-can I go find my brother, please? I need…I need him right now.”

“OF COUSRE, BLUE.” Papyrus looked at Syrup, who nodded. “WE CAN FINISH THE DISHES. YOU DESERVE A GOOD BIG BROTHER HUG AND SOME TIME TO PROCESS.”

He gave a weak smile, eye lights coming back dim and shaky, “You’re both….really good cousins. Thank you.” He then sprinted off.

After a few moments of Syrup drying the dishes Papyrus was flying through washing, he asked, “paps, you doin’ okay, though?”

“OH I’M FINE!” he said, despite the tears cascading down his face.

“y’re not, though.”

“NO! BUT I HAVE TO BE BECAUSE OTHERWISE THIS WHOLE HOUSE IS GOING TO FALL INTO PANDEMONIUM AND WE’LL BE DOOMED!” the forced smile was getting creepy, and Syrup frowned.

“Cousins?”

Cinnamon was at the door to the basement, looking worried, with Y/n peeking around him.

“Did you tell them?” he asked, and Syrup nodded.

Without another word, Cinnamon came up and wrapped Papyrus in a hug from behind. “Cousin, let it go. You have permission to not be okay right now.”

Papyrus slowly let go of his dishes, hand dripping as he rattled loudly, “Cinnamon, I just….I’m sorry I was stupid.”

“You aren’t stupid,” Cinnamon’s gentle voice was soothing to everyone in the room, Y/n taking up the dishes with Syrup. “You are trusting, and kind, and those are very good traits. It is not your fault that someone with an evil mindset took advantage of your goodness.”

“But…but it feels like it is my fault. It feels like I let all this happen and did nothing about it even when it felt wrong.”

“Papyrus,” Cinnamon turned him around carefully, “Look at me.”

He did, seeing the bright green and pink bands around Cinny’s braces and the soft green of his glasses, “Papyrus Serif Gaster, you are a delightful person. Your soul knows what is right, but it’s not a condemnation that you were worried about breaking away from what Sans wanted. Or what all the others wanted. That is a feeling that is natural and normal, and while you could have done some good not listening to it, that might not have been safe. You did what felt like the best way to keep yourself safe, and sometimes that’s all we can do.”

He blinked up at Cinnamon as the tears made his vision swim, “And…and I’m not bad for it?”

“No!” Cinny smiled, “You’re okay. Right now, you need to do what will give you time to heal from this betrayal. Go for a jog, talk to your brother, or any of your friends, or whatever else would help you relax and feel supported and loved. Because you deserve love of all kinds you want! And what that woman has done does not reflect on you at all, because that was her choice to be unkind and unfaithful.”

Papyrus decided what he needed now was more hugs from Cinny.

As surprising as that was for the older skeleton, Cinny just continued to smile and hold tight to his younger counterpart, shushing softly. “You’re a good person, Papyrus. I really miss being you, you know? But I’m so glad I can tell you that, that you’re someone I want to be. That you’re worth so much more than how people treat you. You’re so smart, and brave, and funny, you deserve the world.”

Syrup looked over at a sniffle and quirked his browbone at Y/n.

“I just,” you give him a watery smile, “I wish I could tell that to my younger self, too. They needed to hear that.”

“You deserve to hear that now,” he replied, giving a one armed hug to them.

There was silence in the kitchen then, other than the small sounds of washing dishes. Wherever Jennifer had gone, she’d taken her tantrum with her.

\--

Honey was reeling.

Syrup and Razzberry had both broken up with Jennifer, his brother had come in crying because not only had he found Syrup, but Syrup had said why he broke up with her. Cheating.

Which was also how he found out his little brother had gotten laughed at for trying to share himself with his datemate. This had happened at least three times. Honey felt like someone had pulled the rug out from under his feet.

“that would explain why Razzy would go crazy and then do dramatic apology gestures to someone who’s horrible. Other than us not getting arrested.”

“Papy….” Blue was limp and miserable against his side, and Honey held him closer.

“sorry. No, Blue, you’re right to feel upset. I’m upset,” he was more than upset, actually, since what Syrup and Razzy had done made a lot more sense now that he had context. He wasn’t dumb, he’d heard the noises, too, and seen the frustration of Razzy not finding evidence in the attic to explain them.

“Can…can I sleep here tonight?” Blue asked, still shaking a little.

“of course. Yeah. I don’t wanna be alone after hearing that, either. I’ll find syrup and get more details tomorrow, okay?”

“Okay,” Blue didn’t care, honestly. He trusted Syrup and Razzy to tell the truth and mostly just wanted to be comforted and held right now. His brother was good at both those things.

“let’s go get your pj’s on and we’ll have a sleepover.”

That was good enough for Blue.

\--

Papyrus, after spending some time in the basement being comforted by the brothers, Syrup, and Y/n, went into the hallway behind the living room and knocked on his brother’s door.

“SANS?” he asked, getting no response. “ARE YOU EVEN IN THERE?”

The door was locked when he tried to turn the knob and it just deflated his mood more, “OH. OKAY THEN.”

Listening at the door, there was no sound other than the trash tornado whistling. Not even snoring.

“SO EITHER YOU’RE IN THERE AND DON’T WANT TO TALK, OR YOU’RE NOT HERE. OKAY. I’M GOING TO ASSUME THE LATTER BECAUSE I CAN’T STAND THE FORMER.” He walked on and went to his own room, curling up under his covers and sighing.

At least his racecar bed was proof his brother loved him. At least he knew he’d had someone care for him once.

\--

Things seemed….more tense now.

Jennifer had tried to come in your room the day after your FIGHT with Razzy but your door was locked, so she could only scream.

“What did you do, you whore?! Syrup broke up with me and Razzy’s not even speaking to me! Blue and Papyrus didn’t even cook breakfast!!!”

You didn’t answer, hiding in your covers. At least change was happening, even if you were so damaged that you could only vaguely feel the pang of empathy for Papyrus and Blue. They didn’t deserve Jennifer’s neglect, but they also didn’t deserve the pain of an unfaithful partner.

“You come out here and tell me! I’ll get you for this!”

“JENNIFER, CEASE THIS TANTRUM AT ONCE!”

Razzy’s voice made you quake, but the banshee screeching stopped, and you heard them leaving the area. Even if you did hear her scream again, but distance muffled the sound.

A worried Syrup popped in, “you okay?”

Peeking out, you shook your head, “She didn’t get in here, but I’m still shaken.”

“normal for your first real FIGHT, especially one so serious,” he sat next to you and smoothed his hand over the fabric on your head. “you know I’m kinda impressed about how that all turned out? you did so good, especially without any coaching.”

“I did?” you sit up and lean on him, getting wrapped up in his warm jacket with him.

“yep. didn’ know anybody could talk ‘im down once he made up ‘is mind, but you did. He told me everything.”

You wrap your arm around his chest and sigh, “and you’re sure he’s reasonable now? That’s not happening again?”

“nope.” Syrup nuzzled your head gently, “wouldn’t dare now that me’n the brothers downstairs are aware. Cinny and clove are the strongest in this house now that they’re healthy, so you picked the best protectors around, darlin’.”

You smiled a little, “you should be in some antebellum romance novel. All the southern belles would swoon over a gentleman like you.”

He began to sputter and you felt his skull warm from the blush.

Syrup was worth going through what happened at work. It was worth so much to hear his flustered laugh and know that help was literally just one door over from your staircase now.

\--

“honey, we can’t just believe hearsay,” Classic tried to argue.

“my brother got laughed at. That’s enough for me to consider what syrup said to be true. You hear the noises, too, you’ve seen that it wasn’t y/n causing them.” Honey was very upset. He’d finally brought what Blue told him up to Classic and Red and they weren’t believing him.

“just cause you ain’t gettin’ any-“ Red started but Honey stood up.

“I’m fucking demisexual, you ass, and as much as I care about Jennifer, I’ve never felt that kind of connection with her. it didn’t feel safe when she can turn her mood like a carousel at will,” he didn’t want to swear but he was on edge now. Is this how Crooks had felt when he’d tried to talk to them before?

“not my problem,” Red shrugged.

“honey, c’mon…yeah, we should talk with her about how she reacted to your brother, but I kind of understand,” Sans held up his hands, looking exhausted, “blue’s really pure. It’d be a shock for anybody to get propositioned by him.”

“he’s an adult, sans.” Honey was not taking this. “he’s been out of stripes for six years already. also, if you didn’t remember, she’s his partner. She’s supposed to support him, not laugh in his face when he wants to share all of himself.”

“could’a fooled me; he sure likes toys a lot for a grown ass monster,” Red sneered, even though Sans smacked him for it.

“that’s it,” getting up, Honey left the machine room, “until something is done about this, I’m out. and I expected you to be more upset, classic. your brother’s been getting ignored, too.”

The door slammed and Red went back to what he’d been doing, even as Sans rubbed his arm awkwardly and stood still.

\--

Papyrus didn’t really want to keep up this façade anymore. He’d been trying to act like things were normal, really really trying and keeping his smile on and his volume up. But it just wasn’t.

Neither Syrup nor Blue wanted to eat dinner at the table anymore, Razzy had taken Blue’s seat to get away from Jennifer, Honey was angry with Sans and the Fell brothers, and the tension could be cut with a knife.

That was in addition to the outright lies he’d noticed Jennifer telling.

“Syrup pushed me off the porch!” Syrup never went on the porch, he preferred to stay indoors and play games on his computer and had, in fact, been playing on the game console in the living room with Honey at that very moment. But that was enough for Red to go and try to start a fight with Syrup, who then vanished into his room (which had the wardrobe in front of the door now, so no one was getting in or out without a shortcut).

“I think Razzberry’s gone insane! He screamed at me!” No, he’d spoken at his actual normal volume instead of the quiet version he used when he was serious or in public, and he’d done so to get her to stop trying to get into Y/n’s room again. Papyrus hadn’t seen Y/n since they’d left for work the day of the FIGHT and he was very worried. Razzy had heard the words, laughing at Jennifer.

“OH? SO YOUR TRUE COLORS ARE SHOWING. WELL, THANK STARS I ALREADY DECIDED TO BE DONE WITH YOU, YOU LYING WENCH. I WON’T EVEN CONTACT YOU TO BE PETTY AND GIVE YOU THE ITEMIZED LIST OF WHAT I SPENT ON YOU! HAH!” he’d cackled as he left. Razzy didn’t eat with the family anymore after that.

“Honey burned me with his cigarette!” Honey’s cigarrets were lit with fire magic and thus couldn’t burn anybody. Also, they were monster-brand lavender cigarettes and thus gave off HEALING and CALMING magic. Again, this was enough for Edge to start screaming at Honey, who shot back snarky comments till he had to disappear, too. That was the last night Honey ate at the table.

But really, this one, now that it was just him, his brother, and the Fells here at dinner, was going beyond low and cruel.

“And you know Blue tried to sneak into the bathroom while I was showering? He pretends to be so pure, but he’s just a little pervert.”

Red looked uncomfortable, and Edge raised a browbone, but didn’t say anything.

Sans was half asleep and didn’t notice, and finally, Papyrus couldn’t stand it.

“JENNIFER, PLEASE-“

“Volume!” she gasped, looking offended, and he hated himself for cringing back.

“Jennifer, that’s not something Blue would ever do.”

“But he did it! I was the victim here; I was peeped on!”

Sans snapped his head up with a “whuh?” and Red finally spoke.

“doll, while I know ya thought someone was there, but maybe ya were just tired or your hair moved in tha way?”

Papyrus was grateful for the support, but Jennifer plowed on, “No! Blue was opening the door to my bathroom just as I got out of the shower! He was trying to catch me naked!” She was getting redder in the face, looking angry. There was no fear, or shame, or nerves, no sign of their disbelief being damaging to her at all, just that she was mad her words weren’t garnering instant sympathy.

“that’s pretty serious,” Sans said rubbing his sockets, “I’ll talk with him an-“

“NO!” Papyrus stood up and slammed his hands on the table, making it shake and startling all in the room. “NO, YOU WILL NOT BECAUSE HE DIDN’T DO THAT! WE ALL KNOW BLUE MUCH BETTER THAN THAT AND YET STILL YOU’RE JUST CAVING TO NOT DEAL WITH THE REAL ISSUE!”

“Now YOU’RE screaming at me?!” Jennifer glared at him, and Papyrus hated the jolt of fear that went through him. “You’d rather defend a sexual predator than believe his victim? What kind of sicko are you?”

“hey,” his brother tried to say something, but Papyrus was done.

“THAT’S IT. JENNIFER, YOU IGNORE MY OFFERS OF DATES, YOU LIE ABOUT OUR FAMILY, AND YOU ARE CALLOUS AND CRUEL TO CINNAMON AND CLOVE, AND ANYONE ELSE YOU EVEN REMOTELY DISLIKE! I’M DONE! DATING ENDED!” He was crying, yes, and he was infinitely terrified, but at least he knew a place he could run to now. It was braver to quit, at this point, than struggle on under her tyrannical thumb.

“paps!” Sans called after him as he sprinted away, but he did not stop. Into the kitchen, down the stairs, shutting the door to Cinny’s room behind him as he quickly joined his elder cousin and shook till his whole body was rattling.

“Papyrus? What’s wrong? I heard yelling?” Cinny was gingerly putting his book down and wrapping his long arms around Papyrus.

“I…” he swallowed thickly as the tears clogged his voice, “I B-BROKE UP WITH HER. SHE WAS…SHE’S BEEN LYING ABOUT EVERYONE AND….AND SHE T-TRIED TO SAY BLUE DID SOMETHING UTTERLY HOR-ORRIBLE AND I COULDN’T STAND IT ANYMORE.”

“Oh, cousin,” Cinnamon began to rub his skull like he was a babybones, and for once Papyrus didn’t mind the comparison. “That was very brave of you. I’m sorry you’re frightened and upset, but I am very proud of you for standing up for the truth, as well as Blue and yourself.”

There was a knock on the door, and Clove looked in, “can I help?”

“Sans, please.” Cinny held out a hand, “how would you calm me if I was like this? I can only do so much not being the big brother.”

Papyrus whimpered as Clove joined them, but his thicker arm bones and solid body reminded him so much of Sans…well, he was Sans, wasn’t he?

“Sans, I’m sorry,” he choked, feeling Cinny and Clove both jolt a bit. “I’m sorry we were unkind. I’m sorry it took me this long to say no…”

“easy, paps,” Clove looked up at Cinny in shock, while Cinny just smiled softly and shrugged. “we know you’re sorry. You weren’t ever one of the ones we were upset with. A little sad, maybe, but never angry. Not with you.”

“But you did deserve better,” he wetly added. “I guess I’m not very great, am I?”

“You’re the greatest, Papyrus,” Cinny insisted, “You’re just facing unknowns. You’d never run into anything like what has happened in this house, it was brand new, so it’s not surprising you made a few mistakes handling it.” He was so glad he’d been using that therapy app he’d found. His counselor has a lot of good advice. “But you did a wonderful thing for yourself and others tonight, so when you begin to feel better, remember that. You are good, and worthy of all the best things, even if right now you don’t feel that’s true.”

“he’s right, papyrus,” Clove’s voice rumbled, reminding Papyrus that he wasn’t actually his own brother again. “I know classic would say the same if he were in his right mind right now. Stars know he’s too tired to think straight dealing with everything. But no matter how he reacts, you’re doing the best you can, and we’re gonna be here in your corner. You shouldn’t have to be with the witch anymore, especially if she’s stooping to her usual tricks.”

Out in the sitting area of the basement, trying not to listen to the heartfelt talk, Syrup and Y/n look at each other.

The house was fracturing, the breaking point exceeded, and neither of them knew what would happen next.

\---

She was losing control.

Jennifer had to hold back a growl as she slunk around the house later that night. She’d worked so hard, schmoozing it up with these stupid skeletons, learning just how far she could push each one individually to get them to do what she wanted.

Red was easy. Flash a smile and put out some sex and he was putty. Edge just needed his ego stroked in any way, and she’d THOUGHT Papyrus was much the same, except he’d actually fall for excuses, unlike Edge.

But no. The big doofus had grown a spine somehow…ugh, stupid Sans and his puns. She’d picked him up because he was a dignitary, one of the closest companions of the Ambassador of Monsters and their family. It’d taken time, but the ‘helpless and harmless’ act had cemented him in place after a while, as had playing up the idea that she liked his brother. Once she got him hooked, Papyrus had fallen in line, and then the subject of polyamory came up. Hah! The suckers had both fallen for her and she didn’t mind reaping the benefits. Well, moving in was brought up, and she was introduced to the others.

Her plan had been working perfectly till Y/n came. She should have just searched out a candidate herself instead of waiting for one to come to her. Anyone willing to call had too much spirit for a slave, but she’d thought, with the whole librarian thing, Y/n would have been swayable enough.

But no! No! Instead, everything was falling apart. Well, time to make a move that’ll make sure Y/n is either kicked out or killed and she can start working on getting her stooges back in line.

She walked into the machine room and picked up the sledgehammer they had for whatever reason. She didn’t care, she was just going to smash this machine they valued so much and blame it on Y/n.

Weighing the hammer in her hands, grinning eerily as she did a few test swings, Jennifer approached the thing Sans and the others had worked on for the whole time she’d known them and raised her weapon.

Time to get back on track.


End file.
